The USA is challenged with limited real estate supply, rising inflation, and a lack of locally produced food. It all sounds a bit dim, eh? Fortunately, there are several government and private resources that will support the starting of a controlled environment farm (CEF). Aside from the USA working to create more stable food supply […]

In this blog we will take a look at fertigation skids, how they work and the benefits that you can expect. We will use the Argus RM fertigation skid as an example, TC Controls has years of experience representing, installing and servicing these reliable units. Simply put, an automated fertigation skid allows a grower to […]

White powdery mildew or WPM is a common disease that affects a wide verity of plants, WPM spreads easily and typically kills its plant host. WPM is spread from either wind blowing spores to the next host or humans carrying the spores into grow areas. WPM is a fungi that requires living plant tissue to […]

API is an acronym for “Application Programing Interface”. This interface “enables companies to open up their applications’ data and functionality to external third-party developers, business partners, and internal departments within their companies. This allows services and products to communicate with each other and leverage each other’s data and functionality through a documented interface.”. Simply put, […]

Over 10,000 humans are born every day in the USA, climates are changing, war is occurring, and COVID still exist; this means our food supply is becoming a major issue and it’s not going to resolve itself! This begs the question; how can we develop a sustainable, reliable, healthy food supply and ultimately reduce our […]

Remember your first grow? Maybe it was in your back yard, the garage or even basement! Many of us just used soil from the local garden store or even tried a small PVC hydro setup! While both grow methods are still used today, they are often used by armature growers. For those who are growing […]

NO! humidity is not the same as VPD! While humidity is a part of the growing equation, VPD (vapor pressure deficit) is the measure of how much remaining moisture the air can hold. Humidity is the measurement of how much moisture is currently in the air. This is important to understand as it allows for […]

Have you seen the light? Do you know what’s on the other side? Well, we haven’t but love talking about high pressure sodium (HPS) vs light emitting diodes (LED) Let’s break this down. HPS has a huge following, it was the first widely accepted lighting option for the indoor grow space. The “old timers”, wups! […]

There is a saying “nature knows best”, supporting the idea that outdoor farming is the only true way to produce natural, unaltered crops. While there is some truth to this, many would argue that indoor farming can produce greater yields, in a shorter amount of time. Regardless of which method you prefer this article will […]

Healthy Buildings, Green Buildings and What’s Next? Its seems that every few years a new facility accreditation or initiative emerges green certifications, score cards or healthy building initiatives. Each promise to provide the latest technology and best work environments. Often facility managers (FM) and owners wonder if they should become accredited and if so, for […]

Its now cold, jack frost has arrived. The New England winter can be beautiful, offering great recreational fun; the New England winter also has the joyous effect of frozen pipes, black ice, and thrown-out backs! Regardless of your relationship with winter, we have tips on how you can prepare your facility and its systems for […]

When we hear the word critical, it evokes terms like Important, vital, and serious. In the world of building automation systems (BAS) critical space translates to the control of hospitals, lab spaces, clean rooms and other sterile or life supporting spaces. There are advanced skills and requirements needed to work in these spaces. It is […]

First, thank you for being a customer! You know the value of our control systems and the great people behind them. Argus and TC Controls works hard to create the most capable, user friendly automation systems. This is where the latest Titan system comes into play. The Argus Titan system encompasses recent advancements in automation […]

You are reading this because you are doing your due diligence, because you know there are options when it comes to plant centric automation. Knowing the key differences between cloud-based systems and server-based systems will empower you to make the right decision, for your plants and your wallet! Let’s dive into the general overview on […]

It occurs naturally in Earth’s atmosphere as a trace gas; a colorless gas with a density about 53% higher than that of dry air. Carbon dioxide (CO2) molecules consist of a carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. CO2 is a critical aspect to supporting most all living things. Woo! Exciting stuff! Now […]

The Standard Difference: Over 20 years ago, a controls electrician by the name Warren Castonguay was working at an inner-city jobsite. The site was teaming with activity, trades were working side-by-side. Each worker was striving to meet a deadline, a deadline that apparently meant “everything” when it came to the project manager’s perspective. With this […]

Your building automation contractor should be a part of your design team! TC Controls has over 100 years of knowledge when it comes to building automation controls. With all this knowledge shared through the team, it’s no surprise that everyone agrees on this point; the sooner the controls contractor is included in the project, the […]

If you care about your crops, strive to grow the best and want to gather as much environmental data as possible, this blog post is for you. It does not matter if you grow food, or flowers; having the ability to accurately measure and control your crops environment is everything! In sort, when it comes […]

Building Automation Boom: Will you be apart? As we all know, and most everyone is tired of hearing; COVID-19 brought the world of construction to a halt. It is time we start discussing new news, news that highlights the markets that are back on the rise and predicted to grow at exciting rates. In this […]

Culture of Co-Accountability   Accountability is the ability to hold yourself responsible for your commitments; co-accountability it is the ability to hold your peers to what they committed. Many people think of accountability as a threat, the spark that ignites a fight or even the beginning of the infamous “blame game” … this is a […]

You can design, market, sell, and boast upon your companies’ value but what happens if you can’t deliver? It’s simple actually; you fail. While Project Managers (PM) can often come with a heavy price tag, sometimes up to 20% of your projects overall budget, but it’s a price that’s worth the cost. A project manager […]

Communication is key! Whether it be in our personal or professional lives, it’s the secret recipe to success. In the world of building automation, it is no different! Controls protocols are standardized forms of communication that allows for a buildings equipment to communicate. While there many types of protocols, lets investigate why it is important […]

Who said the old way is the right way?… Certainly not TC Controls! For decades, sub-contractors have been bidding to trade contractors, who bid to mechanical contractors, who then bid to a general contractor – too many layers!  With this many companies involved, you are bound to encounter communication challenges and higher prices as it […]

Every building owner and manager is living through the same struggle during the pandemic; how can we create a safer and cleaner environment within our facilities? There are hundreds of suggestions out there from industrial strength sanitizers to advanced air stream filtration; but one option has been illuminated by many for its germ-killing abilities: UltraViolet-C […]

Its 9AM on a Tuesday, and your phone rings. It is the Director of Facilities informing you that your facility has been hacked. Most of your IT systems are down; the office is in disarray. Only seconds go by and the computer in front of you goes blank – you have no way to communicate […]

What is every grower’s goal? To produce an abundance of beautiful, healthy crops that can be replicated, time and time again! While the goal is easy to understand, the steps to reach consistent success have not been as easy to achieve. Growers are often stuck with only a traditional building automation system (BAS) when they […]

TC Controls was contracted to install HVAC controls for a large cultivation facility.  During the preconstruction meeting, the construction team discovered that wiring installation for fertigation, Co2 and lighting controls had not been covered by any trade.  We suggested that we should perform the installation because it was low voltage, and we would be able […]

As far back as 2013 Java has had several significant security breaches. According to Oracle: 97% of Enterprise Desktops Run Java 89% of Desktops (or Computers) in the U.S. Run Java There are 9 Million Java Developers Worldwide Java is the #1 Choice for Developers Java is the #1 Development Platform 3 Billion Mobile Phones […]

Real Estate Broker vs. Your Controls Contractor As buildings get more technologically advanced control companies are playing a bigger role in the decision process when it comes time to purchase commercial real estate.  Before Direct Digital Control (DDC), pneumatic controls where widely used in commercial building applications and many facilities today still currently use them.  […]