Ridder
"Working together for sustainable growth."
Dutch greenhouse technology group (since 1953) making drive systems, climate screens and process automation, plus a dual-arm tomato harvesting robot.
Ridder is a Dutch greenhouse technology company founded in 1953 by Frans Nugteren, who began by connecting a trench digger to a tractor. In 1967 the company introduced its greenhouse window-opening system, Ridder Drive Systems, of which it says more than 1,000,000 units are in use worldwide. HortiMaX, a supplier of climate computers, water treatment and labour management systems, joined Ridder in 2011, and in 2015 Ridder set up Climate Screens to produce screening solutions for light and energy management. The company reports more than 350 employees and customers in over 100 countries, with Netherlands offices in Maasdijk (Honderdland 131) and Harderwijk. Its leadership includes Pascal Piepers (CEO), Brigitte Nugteren (COO), Ronald Monster (Commercial Director) and Erwin Althof (CTO).
The product portfolio covers process automation for integrated climate, energy and water management; drive systems for greenhouses, livestock housing and crop storage; climate screens; water treatment for irrigation, fertigation, disinfection and recirculation; labour management for workforce, production process and plant health insight; and robotics. Ridder serves glass greenhouses, poly greenhouses and poultry and crop storage, and operates a customer portal and a dealer network.
In 2021 Ridder invested in robotics and digitalisation through a partnership with start-up MetoMotion, developer of the GRoW tomato-harvesting robot. The resulting Ridder Tomato Harvesting Robot harvests cherry-truss, cocktail-truss, mini-plum and vine tomatoes. It uses dual robotic arms to pick both sides of a greenhouse row, AI-driven 3D vision to map obstacles and assess ripeness with a 12-colour grading system, and a smart shear to cut trusses. The robot rides on an autonomous guided vehicle with LiDAR safety sensors and a standalone safety controller, connects over Wi-Fi and cellular networks to the cloud, runs 24/7 on smart battery systems, and places trusses into standard reusable crates stacked on a towed trolley with automated crate management. Ridder states labour savings of up to 80% for vine tomatoes and up to 50% lower cost for the whole harvesting process.
Primary type & automation activities this supplier delivers:
Ridder Tomato Harvesting Robot
Dual-arm autonomous greenhouse robot harvesting truss and vine tomatoes 24/7 with 3D vision ripeness grading.
Ridder Drive Systems
- Launch Year: 1967
Greenhouse window-opening and screen drive systems, over 1,000,000 installed worldwide.
Process Automation
Integrated climate, energy and water control for greenhouses.
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Contact Ridder
WEBSITE
https://ridder.com/PHONE
+31 85 237 3000HEADQUARTERS
Netherlands
Company Facts
Founded
1953
Primary Role
Manufacturer
Company Size
-
Primary Region
Europe
Annual Sales
-
Funding Stage
-
Funding Total
-
