Design Review 2 Water Drop 1

Team Water Drop

The Taapu!

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Team Water Drop

Adam French

Saving the world one bike at a time

Chris Bradford

A Virgo

Anshuman Bapna

Hopelessly out of touch with rural India

Eric Tsai

Monomaniacal passion to sing “Hava Nageela”

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Team Water Drop

Adam French

Saving the world one bike at a time

Chris Bradford

A Virgo

Anshuman Bapna

Hopelessly out of touch with rural India

Eric Tsai

Monomaniacal passion to sing “Hava Nageela”

RAMU!

Our newest team member

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Ramu – the dollar-a-day farmer

• Lower caste farmer • 2-acre plot growing beans and sorghum but nothing in

dry season• Supports a family of 9; save half of crop for

consumption• Get my info from radio or rare city visits

• Dream: grow tomatoes or eggplants in the dry season

• Problem: The well has dried up, and flood irrigation is expensive and inefficient.

• Drip irrigation is great, but requires a gravity tank.

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So what’s wrong with the Gravity Tank?

• Too expensive at Rs 600 ($12)

• Unnecessary valve• Need elevated

place• Theft (Rs 600 is ½

month’s income!)

The Need: A better way to get water from storage to drip-irrigation

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The Taapu!

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The Taapu!

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Value Benefits

• 270 L Storage• Low-cost• Easy Set-up• Transportable• Readily available

materials

* Irrigation * Disaster Relief

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Installation

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Maintenance

Holes may form . . .

But they can be easily patched!

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Ramu’s buying decision

• Cuts 60% off gravity tank price

• Cost of the micro-irrigation system reduced from Rs 950 to Rs 550!

• Rs 400 savings =     •10 day’s income     •My child’s annual school fee     •The cost of seed/fertilizer for another season     •Drip-irrigation system for another 100 m2

plot

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A Scalable Manufacturing Process

• Simple, scalable components– rope, flat sheet, PVC, bar,

tube

• Flat sheet made watertight– Pinched between bar and PVC

• Low capital investment– Local assembly possible at low

labor cost

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Watertight Seal

Steel bar Slit PVC Pipe

Bag material

1

2

3

4

5

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Viable Economics• Manufacturing cost: $2.75

– Direct Materials: $2.50– 0.5 hours of labor: $.25

• Retail price: $4.50– ~30% markup for both manufacturer and

distributor

Building 16 units per day with one employee would make $13 profit per day!

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Marketing and Distribution

• Primary audience: – $1/day farmers in semi-arid, monsoon, no

groundwater availability.

• Reach via:– Drip irrigation system demonstrations (IDE)

• Movievans!– Demonstrations of Taapu by local

manufacturers

• Distribution channels:– Local manufacturers– Local resellers

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Refinement Pilot Tests Develop Local Partners Rollout

Timeline for Expansion

• First step: Refinement of Design– Eliminate leaks, reduce costs

• Next: Test with Ramu and Friends– Tips for further refinement

February Feb/March March -- ?

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Problems and Questions

• Is it durable?• It’s not very attractive!• How best to repair it?• Does it take up too much

space?• Are there alternate uses?• Can Ramu assemble for

himself?

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Potential Refinements

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Expert Testimony

Martin Fisher

Technical Director, ApproTEC

•Cost Reduction is Key

•Must determine appropriate bag size for market

- How often replenished?

•User perspectives of “quality” may vary

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Summary and Conclusions

• Current IDE Gravity Tank needs improvement

• A much cheaper, higher volume tank can be profitably manufactured

• All components are scalable, and bags could be manufactured or assembled locally

• A number of design problems remain to be solved

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Future Steps

• Prioritized Group Research• Reinvigorating Ideation• Refining Mission Statement

IdeationDesign Review Refined Mission

Research