Urban Crop Solutions (UCS), a Belgium-based producer of growing systems inside shipping containers (called “PlantFactories”), has appointed AlfaTech, an engineering consulting firm, as the integration and service partner for UCS’s products in the Southeast Asian region.

The two companies have collaborated in the past to construct the National University of Singapore (NUS) Agricultural Translational Research Centre, in which UCS served as the primary technology partner.

UCS believes its products and services complement AlfaTech's offering, particularly in after-sales services, while AlfaTech sees the potential of UCS's knowledge and technology in industries such as commercial food production, research infrastructure, and plant molecular farming applications in the region.

Analyst QuickTake: UCS's new partnership would allow the company to expand into the Southeast Asian region, building upon its already established presence in the US, Europe, and Singapore. Furthermore, in July 2022, UCS secured its first-ever sale of the "ModuleX PlantFactory'' to Saudi Arabia , marking the company's entry into the Middle Eastern market.