Prevention

Nieuwbouwplannen? Bouw met meer zekerheid

Planning a new build? Build with more certainty

Hagelunie is here to help.

Constructing a new greenhouse or expanding your company represents a major investment. Decisions you take now will affect the quality, safety, continuity and insurability of your buildings later. Make sure you are well informed before construction starts. Identifying potential risks at an early stage will prevent any unpleasant surprises afterwards. Your broker and the risk experts at Hagelunie have extensive experience with construction projects and are happy to advise you. Risk expert greenhouse horticulture Henny Biemans explains how.
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04 Sep 2026

Company News,

Keep your greenhouse safe during a heatwave

6 practical tips for technology, water and staff

During a heatwave, temperatures inside and around your greenhouse can rise quickly. This can create several risks, such as overheating of equipment and electrical systems, a higher fire risk, water supply problems, and extra strain on employees. Crops may also suffer from extreme heat and drought.
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09 Jul 2026

Company News,

Sprinkler systems in greenhouse horticulture

Why are they important?

Fires can severely damage greenhouses, technical installations and crops. A sprinkler system helps stop a fire quickly and protects your company. Horticulture Risk Specialist René Schoenmakers explains why sprinklers are so important and how they work.
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06 Mar 2026

Company News,

Preventive maintenance in greenhouse horticulture

A practical checklist

Greenhouse horticulture relies heavily on technology to support cultivation and ensure efficiency. Proper maintenance is crucial to prevent malfunctions that can cause downtime, damage, and extra costs. Different systems require maintenance at varying intervals, with some needing annual checks and others less frequent attention. Following preventive maintenance tips helps keep your greenhouse business safe, reliable, and operational.
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30 Jan 2026

Company News,

Energy Storage Systems

Know what to consider when storing energy

Berry Looijen, Technical Specialist, advises horticultural companies in Europe on energy strategies. He highlights the importance of energy storage due to limited grid capacity. Stored energy facilitates self-consumption during sunless periods and can be traded profitably, offering a new revenue stream for horticulture.
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Cyber resilience increasingly important

What measures against digital intrusion do you take?

Digitalisation has become part and parcel of agriculture and horticulture. It makes production more efficient. And with conscious choices, it can also contribute to improved sustainability. The flip side is that the number of farms affected by some form of cybercrime is increasing. How do you make sure you’re ready for this?
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Te mooi om waar te zijn

Uw schuur, stal of kas verhuren tegen een zeer aantrekkelijke prijs, op het moment dat u het geld goed kunt gebruiken. Denk goed na over de gevolgen, want u kunt maar één keer nee zeggen.
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Protect your greenhouse from water damage

Practical tips to reduce the risk

Stormy weather and heavy rainfall are happening more often, sometimes producing more water than your drainage systems can handle. This can lead to water damage in your greenhouse. How can you reduce the risk and ensure your greenhouse stays protected?
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28 Nov 2024

Climate Risk,

Hagelunie featured on Hortibiz Newsradio

Tips for minimizing storm damage to greenhouses

Last week, our colleagues were featured on Hortibiz NewsRadio. During a live interview at the studio in De Lier, Netherlands, they discussed the growing challenges posed by extreme weather conditions in the horticultural sector.
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Prevent theft during construction

Here’s how you can safeguard your materials

Theft of construction materials is a frequent occurrence, posing challenges as delays are best avoided during construction. How can you prevent it?
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"We can't wait until 2040 to transition away from gas"

Dutch Strawberry Grower Marcel Dings of Brookberries Urges Early Action on Gas Phaseout

Dutch greenhouse horticulture has the ambition to become climate neutral by 2040. Marcel himself has already taken many measures. He shared his experience and vision of the future with us.
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22 Mar 2024

Climate Risk,

Ensuring Fire Safety with Sandwich Panels

Make the right choices before construction

Quality and continuity go hand in hand. Everyone knows greenhouse businesses that have experienced a fire or other business damage. You then see that the consequences can be severe. Short circuits, lighting problems, and disruptions from the lighting installation are the main causes of fires in the greenhouse sector, with flammable screen cloths acting as potential spreaders. Read our tips on how to deal with risks.
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Washed Away Soil And Uneven Pipes – A Problem?

Getting Ready for Heavy Rain and Storms

Expect lots of rain and rough weather during autumn. We need to be ready for it. Sometimes, there are really heavy rain showers, and our drainage system can't handle all the water. This can lead to water spilling outside your greenhouse. What does this mean? Is your greenhouse truly waterproof? We're here to give you tips to help your greenhouse stay dry.
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"Greenhouse roofs wear down through weather and wind"

The importance of greenhouse roof maintenance

Risk specialist Olaf van Marrewijk: "Greenhouses need regular maintenance. Loose or weak connections and wear on components can greatly reduce the storm resistance of a greenhouse. The majority of greenhouses in Canada have tempered glass without fins, and this is increasingly the case in the Netherlands as well. Regular inspections of your greenhouse can help identify potential issues, allowing you to address them before they become larger problems. We are happy to share practical examples with you, so you know what to look for during your inspection rounds."
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Maintenance is important for a safe greenhouse

Hagelunie can provide guidance on performing maintenance

Greenhouses are standing for longer periods and being used more intensively. Storms, rain, and frost can have an impact on the quality of your greenhouse or commercial building. Therefore, it is important to regularly inspect your greenhouse or building. Pay attention to washed-away soil around your greenhouse, pipe subsidence, broken panes, and leaks.
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Measures to prevent harmful greenhouse gases

In the winter, air vents in greenhouses are seldomly used. Incorrect adjustment or use of equipment can lead to an accumulation of harmful greenhouse gases. What are the possible negative effects of toxic gases in your greenhouse? In this article, we will explain how you can prevent greenhouse gases causing growth retardation or even damage or loss of crop due to toxic greenhouse gasses.
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07 Feb 2023

Crop, Climate Risk

Combined heat and power (CHP) system consulting & maintenance

If your CHP or medium-voltage system fails, your entire business will come to a standstill. Proper maintenance reduces the chance of downtime.
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Switching from heated to unheated cultivation?

Consider the strength of your greenhouse

A greenhouse is built for the first crop grown in it. Most greenhouses are designed for heated cultivation and calculated for limited snow loads. Greenhouses designed for heated cultivation use lighter gutters and roof bars which cannot support a heavy snow load.
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Hit by a snow drift

De Munck nursery managed to rebuild its business after a snowstorm wreaked havoc

Hydrangea growers Ferry van der Meer and Peter de Munck of Kwekerij De Munck in De Lier, the Netherlands, were hit by heavy snowfall in February 2021. Part of the greenhouse collapsed completely. The entrepreneurs managed to recover by acting quickly and wisely and by cooperating with us as insurers, among others.
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Ventilation windows can freeze shut at temperatures around the freezing point

Vents freeze partly due to radiation and the insulating effect of the screens, which is the case during night frost.

Vents freeze partly due to radiation and the insulating effect of the screens, which is the case during night frost. With multiple screens and greenhouses being increasingly closed off, it is often colder above the top screen. The rubber seal of the vents freezes to the aluminium greenhouse frame. “Every year, business owners open vents without realising they are frozen shut,” Theo Herngreen, a greenhouse technical specialist, explains. “The temperature difference between the greenhouse air and the windows is considerable, and temperature sensors or separate measuring boxes are not always installed above the screen. Opening the vents while frozen damages the rubber seals, or worse: the vent mechanism and window actuators can be deformed or broken.”
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How to limit frost damage to your greenhouse

Frost can damage pipes and tubes

What can you do to reduce the risk of damage during winter, unnecessary crop downtime, high costs and damage caused by frost?
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Tips to prevent snow damage in greenhouse horticulture

Reduce the risk of broken windows and damage to your greenhouse structure. Follow our tips in this article.

Prevent snow damage: Greenhouses can carry a limited amount of snow. The weight of a snowpack can be considerable, especially if it persists or if it snows in combination with rain. Excessive weight can break windows or damage the greenhouse structure. A greenhouse can even collapse completely under the weight of snow.
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An empty greenhouse requires extra attention during the winter

Winter weather increases the likelihood of damage to your greenhouse. If you leave your greenhouse empty—either temporarily or for an extended period—to save energy, for example, special attention is required to keep your greenhouse undamaged and ready for use. How do you prevent damage and ensure that you can resume production quickly? We are happy to help.
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Check your heat water storage tank’s condition regularly to ensure operational safety

What is the condition of your hot water storage tank and is it still free of any leakage?

Just outside your premises is often the tank for storage of millions of liters boiling water. Having a functioning tank is key to keeping your business at peak efficiency.
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5 Useful tips to ensure virus-free water

How you can keep a drain water disinfector functioning optimally

Did you know there are risks associated with the reuse of drain water? Viruses and fungi which are present in the drain water can be spread throughout the greenhouse when recirculated. The attention for prevention and control of viruses such as ToBRFV has increased in the recent years. Good prevention also includes disinfection of drain water and maintenance of the drain water disinfector.
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Water silos as a creeping risk

Stand at the helm as a sector

When you invest in new or replace existing water silos, it is important to understand the added security available and have a regular inspection schedule of these silos during their lifetime. Silos used for the storage of rainwater and feed water are a must in the horticulture industry. Hundreds of cubic meters of water can be stored efficiently, but there is a danger in this.
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How to stay in operation during this corona crisis