Japanese business model can optimize cannabis grow profitability

(This is a contributed guest column.To be considered as an MJBizDaily guest columnist, please submit your request here.) Wally Daniels (Courtesy photo)The principle of continuous improvement (CI), called “kaizen” by the Japanese, means to make continuous incremental changes to a company’s manufacturing process while continually improving internal skills, practices and procedures – all to achieve increased efficiency and quality.

By taking a CI approach to direct materials, labor and associated processes, kaizen principles can lower the cost of goods sold (COGS) in your cannabis cultivation business and increase profitability.Most of our CI pursuits are based on having reliable data to measure results.

To grow plants optimally, we need to collect data on three fundamental points: Light Temperature and humidity Carbon dioxide and water ADVERTISEMENT Know the light Rachel Wright (Courtesy photo)The cannabis adage applies here: “It’s just a plant.” Cannabis plants use light energy to drive the metabolic process of photosynthesis.We must know our light levels to optimize plant growth.

Packets of light emitted per unit area per second is a measurable thing.Cannabis, like fruit, requires a certain minimum quantity of light per day to bear valuable crops.

Regular measurement of light levels with a reliable instrument guarantees our plants are getting what they need to optimize each stage of growth. ADVERTISEMENT Control temperature and humidity Photosynthesis has a measurable rate.

Simon Menkes (Courtesy photo)Plants, when supplied with light energy, incorporate the carbon from carbon dioxide gas into sugar molecules.Enzymes are crucial to this process.

And these enzymes function optimally at a specific temperature range.Thus, we need to hit temperature targets to maximize the rate of photosynthesis at each stage of plant growth.

The relative humidity (r...