“The entire solution is based on the unique approach of the Nextdrop startup, which we began to develop together for BZA MENDELU last year, in parallel with the preparation of our own water source. Given that building our own water source for BZA in the form of a deep borehole is a time-consuming and costly undertaking, we decided to support water management by minimizing its consumption,” explained Martin Klimánek, Vice-Rector for Strategy, Sustainability, and Special Purpose Activities. The principle of this solution is a comprehensive approach to the entire system, which will be equipped with individual technical elements to achieve real-time monitoring, automation, and digitization of all distribution systems.
Currently, with the exception of rainwater collected on orchid greenhouses and farm buildings, all water needed for irrigation is obtained from two water mains located in the upper part of the BZA. Water from the irrigation line is stored in the 110 m3 Greenhouse retention tank, the 110 m3 Farm building retention tank, and the 20 m3 Pumping station tank. “Our university is therefore planning to construct a deep borehole, which will serve as a permanent source of water for irrigation, as well as to collect rainwater on buildings on the university campus. The planned construction will include two 100 m3 retention tanks, the first near the administration building and the second in the lower part of the complex, connected to the tank at the farm building,” Klimánek described.
In the next stage, a digital twin of the entire BZA complex will be created, which will provide an overview of the condition of the distribution networks and measure environmental parameters. “The basic functions will include monitoring and remote control of all control elements, automatic pumping of retention tanks, irrigation control based on weather forecasts, detection of accidents and malfunctions, alerts for deviations based on statistics and predictions, and data visualization. This will create a unique model that will not only serve for real operation at BZA, but can also be used for other educational, research, and semi-operational applications,” the vice-rector explained.
The first stage will take place from November 2025 to March 2026, with the second stage following in the fall of 2026.
The entire technical solution is scalable and allows for further adaptations with regard to future investments in water management, as it includes electronic control units that are fully modular. “A cloud solution will be available for automation and data processing, with the option of integrating external information sources and information systems that we currently use at MENDELU. Such a solution will enable the easy connection of other university campuses to the entire water management digitization system if necessary and will significantly increase its sustainability and security,” Klimánek summarized.
The Botanical Garden and Arboretum is an educational and functional facility of Mendel University in Brno, covering an area of almost 11 hectares adjacent to the university campus. The grounds feature a significant collection of trees, shrubs, flowers, and other plants, including one of the largest collections of tropical orchids in Europe. The BZA serves both for research and teaching, as well as a relaxation area for the MENDELU academic community and the public.