Welcome to the very first episode of The Maintainers: A Blue Cap Community Podcast, Hosted by David Lee, Enterprise Account Director at Tractian, and Jake Hall, The Manufacturing Millennial. Joining Jake & David for Episode 01 is Longchi Foma, General Manager at Kalera, the global leader in vertical community farms. 

The trio cover a wide range of topics including: What maintenance technology Kalera implements in their day to day, how organizations can do a better job of implementing innovative solutions with aging populations, and advice for veterans looking to break into the industry. Longchi shares data about the impact unplanned downtime can have on operations at Kalera given the amount of precise parameters their equipment needs to operate within. 

Additionally, hear all the ways Kalera is looking to shape the future of farming through their vertical hydroponic systems. With vertical farming techniques; farmers can use 98 percent less water and 99 percent less land. They can produce crop yields of 240 times that of traditional farms through year-round rolling or perpetual harvest.

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Guest Bio

As a General Manager at Kalera, Longchi leads all aspects of a $60M vertical hydroponic farm facility that produces high-quality, fresh, and sustainable greens for customers across Texas and surrounding states. With nearly a decade of experience in the oil and gas industry, he brings a unique perspective and expertise in managing complex, large-scale, innovative operations, logistics, and quality systems.

He is passionate about continuous improvement, learning new skills, and applying them to new challenges. He holds certifications in Project Management Professional (PMP), Six Sigma Green Belt, and Financial Professional, and is always looking for opportunities to expand his knowledge and network. He’s a proud Texas Tech alum, The Society of Petroleum Engineers, The National Society of Leadership and Success, and a former Army mechanic. His mission is to leverage his skills and experience to positively impact the environment, the community, and the industry.

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Guest Quote

“Maintenance is extremely important because you're dealing with such complex things. From sensors to data analytics, to machine learning, algorithms, predictive maintenance, all that is needed. Because one clog could be detrimental to yield, you could go from having a certain amount of yield to a reduction of 30%.  So maintenance is key.” – Longchi Foma

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Time Stamps 

*(01:32) Opening Icebreaker

*(02:21) Longchi’s background

*(03:49) Segment 01: The Future of Factories

*(07:02) What’s trending in the industry

*(09:43) Segment 02: The Maintainer Mashup

*(12:00) How to inspire collaboration amongst teams

*(14:35) Are older generations accepting modern technologies?

*(15:55) Segment 03: What’s in Your Toolkit?

*(18:38) Advice for implementing new tools

*(21:59) What we can do for our Veterans

*(24:39) Segment 04: Fix-It Funnies

*(25:52) The importance of agriculture

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Links

• Connect with Longchi Foma on LinkedIn
• Learn more about Kalera
• Connect with David Lee on LinkedIn
• Connect with Jake Hall on LinkedIn
• Learn more about Tractian