"Having protection in place is not enough if the grower cannot deploy or retract it quickly when conditions change," says Mateo e Hijo, a company specializing in the development and maintenance of infrastructure and services for intensive protected agriculture.
"In high-value crops such as cherry and table grape, rain, wind, hail, and temperature swings can demand urgent decisions, while labor and travel represent significant costs." And protection is not limited to the harvest itself: "it is also important to reduce unnecessary exposure of the covers and to look after the infrastructure."
© Mateo e Hijo © Mateo e Hijo © Mateo e Hijo
The Walia project
The WALIA® project was developed to address these needs. It began in 2022 and has been commercially available since 2026.
The system consists of a metal structure fitted with retractable plastic or mesh covers. A weather station and sensors monitor variables such as indoor and outdoor temperature and humidity, wind speed and gusts, and depending on the configuration, rainfall and solar radiation. Motors and transmission mechanisms convert commands into the physical movement of retracting or extending the covers.
Connectivity and softw...