Catalogue of Infrastructures and Facilities

The Raumberg-Gumpenstein research site in Styria, Austria, is a leading agricultural centre focused on sustainable farming, animal husbandry, and environmental science. With decades of expertise in agricultural research and innovation, the farm bridges scientific excellence with real-world farming applications.

The centre has experience in testing AI and robotics in livestock management, including trials with manure removal robots and sensor systems in cattle farming. Additionally, it features facilities for measuring emissions from pig and poultry farming. Through these advanced technologies, Raumberg-Gumpenstein supports eco-friendly and efficient agricultural practices, providing innovative solutions for modern farming challenges.

As a multi-species testbed, it provides access to controlled experimental environments and operational farm conditions, enabling technology providers to evaluate systems under practical constraints. Its role within agrifoodTEF is to generate reference data, validate digital tools, and foster the adoption of sustainable and animal-friendly innovations across Europe’s agrifood ecosystems.

Facility

Pig research barn

The barn contains three identical compartments that can be customised for experimental setups. The barn supports video monitoring, feeding trials, and comprehensive animal welfare and environmental impact analysis.

Facility

Cattle research barn

The cattle research barn at Raumberg-Gumpenstein is a state-of-the-art facility designed to meet international research standards for cattle experimentation. The barn supports real-time data acquisition through sensors and cameras, ensuring precise measurement and observation of animal welfare, behaviour, and productivity. With dedicated spaces for calving, separation pens, and a high standard of hygiene, the infrastructure enables both basic and applied research in animal science. A highly appreciated feature is the combination of health data from sensors with same-time video recording.

Facility

Poultry research barn

The poultry research barn at Raumberg-Gumpenstein is a versatile research facility designed to conduct a variety of studies with both fattening poultry and laying hens. This multi-purpose barn can be adapted for different poultry types, making it suitable for a wide range of research applications. The barn is equipped with continuous video monitoring to track animal behaviour and a gas measurement system to monitor emissions during experiments. In addition, the facility allows for regular weighing of the animals, providing data for feed efficiency and growth rate studies. These capabilities support research aimed at improving animal welfare, optimising poultry production, and minimising environmental impact.

Facility

Small ruminants research barn

The small ruminants research barn at Raumberg-Gumpenstein is a flexible facility designed for in-depth studies on sheep and goats. It offers customisable compartments for various research setups, including feeding trials, performance testing, and carcass evaluation. Equipped with 360-degree video monitoring and weighing systems, the barn supports continuous behavioural tracking and health assessments, providing valuable insights into animal welfare and productivity.

Infrastructure

Experimental Agricultural and Livestock Farm Torre Lama

The farm has been established for the purpose of organising, coordinating and implementing, through the introduction of innovative technologies, several services in support of applied research programs. The Agricultural and Livestock Farm, with an extension of 49 hectares, has facilities for cultivation, research and teaching. It is equipped with an office building, a conference hall, a small canteen and a guesthouse with 12 furnished double rooms.

The farm includes a modern greenhouse facility consisting of three independent compartments made of steel and glass and provided with heating and a centralised fertigation system. A weather station and an advanced sensor network consent to continuously monitor the soil-plant-atmosphere system in response to environmental and technical variables.

The farm is located in Bellizzi (SA), about 70km from the Department of Agriculture, along the SS 18, in the Pontocagnano-Battipaglia district, and falls within the Destra Sele Water District.

Facility

Analytical Laboratory

Main equipment includes a multiparameter metre station that monitors different water quality parameters including pH, ORP, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, and temperature; an IRGA system for measuring leaf gas exchanges; a psychrometer and a pressure chamber for measuring the water potential on leaves; a leaf area metre and fluorometre that enables quick and precise measurement of chlorophyll fluorescence parameters; probes for ion detection in leaf sap.

Facility

Experimental farm

The experimental farm also has a weather station. Crops routinely cultivated for research purposes are wheat, forage crops, corn, tomato and vegetable crops in general. The main focus of the farm is on the assessment of crop water requirements through the integration of remote sensing and in-situ sensors for data collection and the development of smart irrigation systems. Advanced weed management through robotic systems is also a developing area of research.

Facility

Experimental Greenhouses

Three greenhouses of steel and glass - 27m x 10m. The greenhouses are equipped with cultivation benches for hydroponic growth systems, fertigation units and sensors for monitoring environmental parameters.

Infrastructure

Castel Volturno Experimental Pilot-Farm

The farm is equipped with the essential machines and facilities to carry out experimental activities in the open field and controlled environment. The farm has a prototype system to simulate circular resource management that includes: a photovoltaic plant, a biomass pyrogasifier, a greenhouse and a CO2 recovery plant for carbon fertilisation. The crop area is divided into 3300 m2 plots that represent the cultivation units, which are served by fixed sprinkler irrigation and drainage systems. The Centre has a meteorological station, which is part of the national agrometeorological network.

Main research activities include:

Definition of criteria for optimising the management of production systems.
Application of innovative strategies in the context of sustainable agriculture.
Characterisation parameters of nutrient fluxes in the soil/plant system for the identification of high-efficiency
fertilisation models aimed at optimising crop production while preserving natural resources.
Precision fertilisation and irrigation.

Facility

Experimental field

This is a 45ha irrigated field suitable for growing any field crop of the Mediterranean environment. It also has a weather station.

Facility

Greenhouses