Productsproducts xxxxxx
Global Resource Alliance, in Tanzania, Lyn Hebenstreit reports
Global Resources Alliances is an USA based NGO that implements integrated Rural Development projects in Western Tanzania. We have installed over 40 BluePumps in Tanzania the past 3 years and are very impressed with the top quality materials and that go into their construction and the simple elegance of their design. Maintenance is generally limited to the periodic tightening of a few easily accessible bolts, so training someone from the local village where our pumps are installed is easy.
Although the initial cost of the BluePump may be more than other imported models, the reliability, durability and ease of maintenance make them much less expensive in the long run, and keep our clients happy – which is priceless.
Lyn Hebenstreit
President, Global Resource Alliance
www.globalresourcealliance.org
================================================================================================================
Feedback from Oxfam Kenya, Brian McSorley reports
Go to almost any rural area in Kenya and chances are you won't have to drive around for long to find a broken handpump. Whatever the make there's always a reason why it wasn't possible to fix - lack of funds, no spares, spares but no tools, technician was trained but left village, "We're waiting for the agency that installed it to come and fix it," etc, etc.
Pumps break, it's normal - isn't it? So doesn't it seem strange that it has not been possible to produce a reliable handpump that doesn't break down in the first place?
In 2006 when a developer from the Netherlands claimed to have produced just that - "a maintenance-free handpump, that could operate for 20+ years" - it was too significant a claim for Oxfam to ignore.
The developer was Paul van Beers, founder of the Fairwater Foundation, and what has followed is a three-year pilot study to trial the "BluePump" in the Turkana District of Northern Kenya.
On inspection the first four pumps procured for the initial pilot looked technically sound - rods, handle, pipes, bearings and headworks were of high precision and good quality. It was therefore a surprise when the first pump broke down within 24 hours of installation.
The first problem related to a leaking foot valve which meant the pump needed to be primed every day. In practice, for an 80 metre deep borehole this meant the first person to reach the pump in the morning had to pump the handle for 10-15 minutes before water discharged from the spout. After a few minutes of no water coming from the pump, the natural reaction for the user was to assume the pump was not working and to give up.
In the three year pilot problems have been experienced with the cylinder, rods, centralisers and handle. Expressed this way it would not appear to be a success but this is actually far from the reality. The underlying success of the project has been the mutually beneficial partnership that has developed between Oxfam and the pump producer through regular e-mail or telephone correspondence on the performance of the pump. This has resulted in a pump that is now probably better than anything else on the market - and communities who are a lot more water secure than they were three years ago.
For the developer he has access to the perfect field environment. Turkana is probably one of the harshest environments on the planet to test a handpump - water is scarce, water points are overcrowded and at times people literally fight over water. Handpumps tend to be isolated with no caretaker so are exposed to rough handling, general abuse and risk of vandalism.
The mechanics of a handpump undergo near continuous heavy use and abuse from the average village. The continuous movement and vibration of handle, rods and piston to lift the water puts enormous stresses on all components of the unit so it is no surprise that pumps break.
If there is something that can go wrong it will, so to have a team of field staff able to report performance issues back to the designers in Europe has been hugely beneficial. Equally having a pump designer with the technical expertise and willingness to invest time and money to resolve the problems has been a big help for Oxfam.
The BluePump is not the perfect handpump and may not be the most appropriate solution everywhere but it is arguably better than anything else currently available on the market. For Oxfam's programme in Turkana it is particularly satisfying to be able to say that in 2011 because of our programme the BluePump is a significantly more reliable, robust pump than it was when it was first launched. Also as part of this process national suppliers have been encouraged to source and supply these pumps and spare parts are now readily available in Kenya.
More importantly, as a direct result of this work communities in Turkana now have improved access to water, are less vulnerable to water shortages during drought and have a greater level of self reliance when it comes to management of their water supplies than they did before.
This was really put to the test last year when Kenya experienced its worst drought in 60 years. Despite very heavy usage the pumps have performed well and have experienced minimal problems. This work is still not complete and regular discussions continue with the developer to explore what additional improvements can be made to strengthen the pump further.
==========================================
Comments form FairWater, Paul van Beers
Thanks Brian for you good work with the BluePump. Without you and your team, this wouldn't be possible. You are right, the Turkana region is devastating & non forgiving and they say "what doesn't kills you, makes you better" and that sure counts for the BluePump as well. It performed fine up to 40 - 50m. but now we are also more confident up to 100m. It's definitly so much better now!
Thanks to this dreadfull experience, we could improve the design even more and improvements are still going on. Recent improvements will include special centralizers that can be re-used several times again and again, and also allow easier fishing of rods in the unlikely case of rods breaking (but Turkana seems to be Murphy's Kingdom... especially in deep and non vertical, bended boreholes).
Having said this, we all know that technology alone is not enough for sustainability. In the end, everything will fail, even a BluePump. Therefore we have to add that we promote with the durable BluePump the BlueZone Business Approach (BBA). This is based on the assumption that for many years to come, there will be a local demand for better quality handpumps like the BluePump, especially for rehabilitation of broken handpumps.
Many communities would love to have their old handpump replaced by a solid BluePump now. We see that hapening now in all countries (based on a total of about 500 BluePumps in 10 African countries) that have BluePumps. Therefore BluePump dealers will have a steady extra income from a contineous market in rehabilitation of broken down handpumps At the same time, they will have pumps and spares in stock just in case Murphy comes along. We also encourage dealers to assist communities and repair for a small fixed price.
We feel that this BlueZone Business Approach with rehabilitated handpumps is more sustainable, because of the simple fact that all BluePumps will be installed by the dealer or his local representative. It became clear, that communities really appreciate the local entrepreneurs that help them and are there to stay. NGOs in the past, they come and go, which demotivated many communities. BluePump dealers are larger companies that are there to stay and to serve the communities in a professional way. That is why FairWater is supporting these dealers with advice and often as well with pre-financing sponsored handpumps from our FairWater TrustFund.
Asante Sana!
Paul van Beers
FairWater Foundation
BluePump Distributor & Service
Blue Zone Malawi
Contact: Mr. Kim
Phone: +
Fax: +
Email: x
Blantyre
Malawi
FairWater Partner NGOs
Christian Relief Organization
Contact: Dennis
Phone:
Fax:
Email:
Blantyre
BluePump Distributor & Service
Blue Zone Malawi
Contact: Mr. Kim
Phone: +
Fax: +
Email: x
Blantyre
Malawi
FairWater Partner NGOs
Christian Relief Organization
Contact: Dennis
Phone:
Fax:
Email:
Blantyre
BluePump Distributor & Service
Blue Zone Malawi
Contact: Mr. Kim
Phone: +
Fax: +
Email: x
Blantyre
Malawi
FairWater Partner NGOs
Christian Relief Organization
Contact: Dennis
Phone:
Fax:
Email:
Blantyre
BluePump Distributor & Service
Blue Zone Malawi
Contact: Mr. Kim
Phone: +
Fax: +
Email: x
Blantyre
Malawi
FairWater Partner NGOs
Christian Relief Organization
Contact: Dennis
Phone:
Fax:
Email:
Blantyre
BluePump Distributor & Service
Blue Zone Malawi
Contact: Mr. Kim
Phone: +
Fax: +
Email: x
Blantyre
Malawi
FairWater Partner NGOs
Christian Relief Organization
Contact: Dennis
Phone:
Fax:
Email:
Blantyre
BluePump Distributor & Service
Blue Zone Malawi
Contact: Mr. Kim
Phone: +
Fax: +
Email: x
Blantyre
Malawi
FairWater Partner NGOs
Christian Relief Organization
Contact: Dennis
Phone:
Fax:
Email:
Blantyre
BluePump Distributor & Service
Blue Zone Malawi
Contact: Mr. Kim
Phone: +
Fax: +
Email: x
Blantyre
Malawi
FairWater Partner NGOs
Christian Relief Organization
Contact: Dennis
Phone:
Fax:
Email:
Blantyre
BluePump Distributor & Service
Blue Zone Malawi
Contact: Mr. Kim
Phone: +
Fax: +
Email: x
Blantyre
Malawi
FairWater Partner NGOs
Christian Relief Organization
Contact: Dennis
Phone:
Fax:
Email:
Blantyre
BluePump Distributor & Service
Blue Zone Malawi
Contact: Mr. Kim
Phone: +
Fax: +
Email: x
Blantyre
Malawi
FairWater Partner NGOs
Christian Relief Organization
Contact: Dennis
Phone:
Fax:
Email:
Blantyre
BluePump Distributor & Service
Blue Zone Malawi
Contact: Mr. Kim
Phone: +
Fax: +
Email: x
Blantyre
Malawi
FairWater Partner NGOs
Christian Relief Organization
Contact: Dennis
Phone:
Fax:
Email:
Blantyre
The cheap and easy to use "Kisii" water filter was developed in 2003 by the staff of the Rural Water Development (RWD) project in Kisii in Western Kenya, as a response to the high pollution levels of the springs and wells in that area.
One of the reasons to come up with this innovative and simple idea, was that people did not like to spent money for boiling water all the time. Boiling water is also cumbersome and besides, the charcoal and gas used for this, imposes an additional pressure on the fragile environment.
The Kisii filter low-cost household filter became rapidly popular in Kenya, not only in the rural areas, but also in the towns, where people also needed to boil tap water. Many NGOs are now also promoting and copying this simple system. It is estimated that world wide already over 100.000 unit locally made units are in use.FairWater continued this work and facilitates NGOs in starting water filter projects in Africa.
The specific (out-of-the-box) idea of the “Kisii Filters” is to use high quality replacement ceramic candles that are normally used for more expensive "fancy" systems in simple and cheap PVC buckets.
After an extensive market search on the available water filters, FairWater recommends that the best quality / price ration can be found with the Pozzani and Stephani ceramic filters, made in Brazil for already about 40 years. They can be ordered through FairWater, but only in larger quantities.
FairWater is now promoting 3 basic types of filters systems, ranging from very low cost to medium cost.
1. The Siphon Bucket system
2. The Mono-filter system
3. The Double Bucket system
The "Siphon Filter" (SF) system; this is the most simple solution, just a replacement candle in a protection jar with a plastic tube, that hangs outside any bucket filled with water. Gives about 15 liter a day.
Operation: The ceramic candle is placed in a protective jar and a plastic tube is inserted in the spout of the filter element. The filter with the tube are placed in the water. When the filter stone and the tube are full of water, the end of the tube is taken out, below the level of the filter and the filtered water will drip out of the tube in any object that people prefer to store the water in. To increase the quantity, more filter elements can be used in the same bucket.
The "Bucket Filter" (BF) system; easy to use, can be made by simply making a hole in any plastic bucket. Gives about 20 liter a day.
Operation: The same ceramic filter element can be used. In this case a simple hole will be made near the bottom of any plastic bucket and the filter spout is attached with a PVC screw in that hole. Simply poor the water in the bucket and after a while, when the filter stone is saturated with water, the spout will start to drip.
The "Kisii Filter" system (DB); It has 2 buckets, one for raw water on top and one with a tap to store and use the filtered water below. Specific advantage is the safe storage in the lower bucket, with always safe drinking water available. Gives about 20 liter a day.
Operation: One or more of the same ceramic filter elements can be used for this system. The lower bucket has a small PVC tap for easy use of the filtered water. Typical buckets are 10 to 20 liter large, which is about the quantity that one filter element will provide overnight.
Maintenance aspects of all ceramic filter systems
All ceramic filters must be cleaned once a week, with a "Schotch-Brite" tissue that comes with the filter system. Contact with soap is not allowed; this may clog the fine pores in the filter stone. When the water is dirty, obviously the cleaning of the outside of the stone should be done more often.
The stones can be used from 6 month to over a year , depending on the intensity of use. Normal operation will give about 20 litre of water per day to filter clean water from bacteries etc. In such conditions, the filter stone can be used for about a year. If the filter is used in dirty water, the filter will last about 6 month due to the fact that the outside of the filter stone will be more eroded by the necessary scrubbing. If about 5mm has been removed from the outside, the filter stone should be replaced.
Cost apects: Starts with 3 Euro for the ceramic filter element and 1 Euro for the Tap. This is affordable for low-income families. It is important to realize that the use of water filters will reduce the cost of medicine and illlness, and charcoal or gas, so in fact the filter will pay itself back within its period of use.
In local shops, similar filters are often available, ranging in price from 1 euro (India made, cheap but rather poor quality, but may work for a while) to about 10 euro and up to 30 euro for the more expensive Berkeley and Katadyn filter elements.
Sustainability aspects
It may become clear from the above, that the ceramic filter element works very well, but only for a relative short periode, 6 to 12 month max. Therefore, for sustainability and a long lasting impact of introduction of water filters, it is crucial that the filter elements can be bought later on the local market, or on the internet.
Therefore FairWater stresses that only such low-cost systems should be introduced that can easilly use local available replacement water filter elements. In addition to that, through this FairWater internet site and with the many local FairWater partners, replacement filters can alway be obtained in larger quanitities for special NGO prices.
How to start with a Kisii Filter Project?
NGOs that want to start with a Kisii Filter project can order the ceramic candles and taps via FairWater. We advise to use local plastic buckets, but if needed, also plastic buckets (preferably "paint buckets") can be send as well. The filters and sets can be send by airfreight to any place in the world within a few weeks notice.
For instance: The Kisii Siphon Filter system (see picture) can be obtained through FairWater, starting with only 5 Euro each for the complete set (ceramic filter, pre-filter scrub pad, housing and tube). It can be used in any ordinary bucket in the kitchen and can be taken to the field as well to be used in tents for nomads or in refugee camps.
Just contact us for more info or if you want to start with a Kisii filter project, filter candles, taps etc. with one of the above mentionned low-cost water filter systems.
For more information on water filters, see also the following links:
http://www.waterfiltercomparisons.com/?d=gp
PET water bottles are becoming an environmental problem
Not only the expensive bottling process itself creates environmental problems, also the storage, transport with llorries and associated logistics cause a high impact on the environment with CO2 emmisions using fossile energy. After drinking, most people throw these PET bottles away and it is evident that these bottles are becoming one of the major environmental hazards these days.
In Africa: 40% to 70% handpumps are not functional
A study by UNICEF in 2007 indicated that about 40% (about 150.000 of the 350.000 installed) of the handpumps in Africa is not working anymore. It also became clear that most handpump have a limited functional life of 3 to 5 years. Therefore is is estimated that by the end of this year over 50% is broken down and that within 10 years most handpumps in Africa will be abandoned.
In areas with deep groundwater handpump failure rates are often over 80%. This is especially problematic because alternative water points are far away and often polluted. Most handpumps are VLOM pumps from India, rather cheap, but not reliable enough for Africa and last only a few years.
The situation in Africa becomes more critical every day; the water pumps still working are those recently installed. If water projects do not change for the better, Africa will turn into a handpump graveyard while people are again without water.
What went wrong?
Basically, it's very simple: In the first place it is important to define the key problem. Rural communities in Africa are often very poor and have little or no financial and technical means for maintenance. This is very obvious, but amazingly enough after 20 years, still not well understood by many policy makers. They assume that rural people will maintain handpumps all by themselves, which is called the VLOM approach, using VLOM type handpumps. However, these VLOM handpumps are fragile and break down all the time. Repairs are in the beginning relatively easy, but become more and more complicated after a few years and also need more and more expensive spare parts. Obviously, this was not what the communities expected and can maintain for many years, so these VLOM handpump are abandoned within 3 to 5 years.
How long can this go on?
Good question. The answer to this is surprisingly: "very long!" The reason for this is rather simple. NGOs and water projects are not accountable for what they do with the funding. In fact, they can do whatever as long as they show in the end some nice pictures with kids pumping from the VLOM pump. But they do not show you the results some 3 to 5 years later. Of course not. In the rare cases that VLOM pumps still work after some years, this is mainly due to the fact that the NGOs are still working in these areas and continue to repair these pumps for free. Of course, that is not sustainable.
A clear example of this is an Oxfam water project in Angola some years ago. They maintained over 500 handpumps in central Angola, but when the USAID funding suddenly stopped (because USAID funding was diverted to Iraq), all these water points were left alone and broke down, one after the other. Africa is full with stories like these.
Environmental aspects and CO2 compensation
Non-sustainable handpumps also represent a large environmental problem. The never ending project activities, cars & lorries going up and down, wasted energy, wasted materials, endless meetings, travels, piles of useless reports, etc. etc. .... it all adds up to the huge CO2 footprint of abandoned handpump and pressure on the environment. To compensate one abandoned handpump in terms of CO2 emisions, we have to plant at least 1 football field with trees in Africa. That equals about 6.000 football fields in each African country.
In fact, if you sponsor to rehab an abandoned handpump with a durable BluePump, not only you give water to a community for at least 10 years, but you also re-compensate the equivalent of 1 football field in CO2 as well.
It's time for a transparent & environmental friendly approach with durable results: the FairWater BluePump.
Lubango in south Angola today: Happy families due to rehabilitation with the durable FairWater BluePump, easy to use!
BlueZones in Africa, is a project of FairWater to promote reliable and sustainable community handpumps that can be maintained at low cost and that can be used for a long time before needing a simple check-up.
The durable concept of the BlueZones was originally developed in the Rural Development Project in Kenya in 2003 and was further tested in Africa and improved by the co-founder of FairWater, Paul van Beers, in cooperation with several international NGOs, such as Oxfam Kenya and UNICEF Mozambique. The concept is based on the combination of using a very strong & reliable, simple handpump (The BluePump) with a straight foreward regional support structure for technical back-up in case of a major problem.
FairWater assist NGOs in the set-up of the BlueZone maintenance structure. The BluePump itself can can be obtained with BOODE B.V. in the Netherlands and through local BluePump distributors in Africa, for a "fair" price, with a reliable after sale service for installation and technical backup.
Why use the BluePump?
The BluePump is more expensive compared to the cheaper VLOM handpumps! But all studies and statistics show that these cheap India VLOM pumps do not last, they break down too often, are complicated and expensive to repair and need many spare parts. In the end these VLOM pumps are very expensive to maintain for the users, besides, spare parts are often not available.
BluePumps on the contrary, are very reliable, don't need regular spare parts and can therefore be maintained at a very low cost with the help of a regional support sructure. By 2011 there are already 8 BlueZones starting to operate in Africa with over 300 BluePumps. The concept is become rapidly popular with the users and serious NGOs.
The BluePump has many qualities:
- Amazingly simple to install and maintain without special tools
- High water output: >1 m3 / hour at 60m.
- Light pumping, also at greater depth
- Long life pump BPS system, maintenance free
- strong 2m. rods, fully threaded, so incase of problems, the rod can still be used
- simple & resistant rubber centralizers, that can also be made locally
- Regular maintenance is only tightening of nuts & bolts
- Simple check-up every 5 to 10 years
- The cap can be used for advertisement, which creates income
Contact BOODE B.V. in the Netherlands for more info.
...
Deep water levels are accessible with the BluePump
Before the introduction of the BluePump design, it was very difficult to operate handpumps in boreholes with deep groundwater. Pumping becomes heavy and breakdowns are more frequent with increasing depth, resulting in a very high percentage (> 80%) of abandoned handpumps.
What can be considered deep groundwater?
In general, handpumps cannot be used below 40m. Below that depth, the weight of the pipes become to much and the pipes can break. To avoid such regular breakdowns, the pipes must be supported. However, the pump cylinder is not installed at the static water level, but at the dynamic water level. The dynamnic water level during pumping is normally 5 to 10m. below the static water level.
Water levels change with time
During pumping the waterlevel in the borehole goes down and can be 5 to 10m below the static waterlevel. In addition to this lower level, in the dry season the regional groundwater level may also go down. In brief, the depth of the cylinder should have a 'safe margine', which is basically the sum of pumping drawdown and other groundwater fluctuations, so in general at least 10 to 15m. below the static water.
Therefore in areas with a static groundwater levels between 25 and 30m. deep, the safe installation depth of the cylinder is about 40m. Water levels deeper as 25m. should therefore be considered as 'deep groundwater zones' as far as it concerns to handpumps.
BluePump Bottom Support solution
When handpumps cylinders are installed below 40m. the main technical problem is caused by the weight of the pipes filled with water. With the India VLOM pumps, these pipes eventually break and leak. However, the BluePump comes with a a "Bottom Support" system, in which the rising main pipes are not hanging on the top, but continue until the bottom of the borehole. This avoids stress on the pipes and contributes to the life span of the PVC pipes.
The BluePump Bottom Support (BS) system enables pumping from 100m deep. With the installation rope, the installation up is also easy and can be done by 2 persones only without the need of a tripod or additional installation tools.
...
The BluePump BS system needs no borehole casing.
Many NGOs have their own drilling equipment and know that an important part of a borehole is the PVC casing. Not only the cost of the casing is a concern, also the logistics to find the right casing is often a problem.
With the BluePump BS system, this is not a hassle anymore, on the contrary; the BluePump is therefore very cost-effective in new boreholes:
The PVC rising main pipes of the BluePump can directly be installed in the new boreholes, withouth first putting in the traditional 4 or 5 inch PVC casing pipes with a filter screen.
In fact, the rising main becomes the borehole screen, only with a smaller diameter. This also makes drilling easier and cheaper. For a "standard" casing the driling diameter must be at least 6 inch, but with the BluePump BS system, a borehole diameter of 4 inch is already sufficient.
After drilling and installing the BluePump BS casing pipes & screens, the project can directly proceed with the construction of the concrete base with the anchor bolts and wait for 5 days until the concrete has hardened.
The next week the blue box is installed and the installation is completed by lowering the cylinder with the rods (the yellow elements on the picture on the left) into the pipes until it fits in the conical seat, connect the rods to the handle and the pump is ready to use.
The BS casing pump system will save the project more money and time when the borehole is deeper. Imagine, the cost of a standard casing for 80m is at least some 1.000 US$ that can now be spent on other issues.
However, it is not only the cost of the traditional casing that is a concern, but also the logistics to get the casing to the site and the additional time to put it in adds to the total cost and hassle of making a water point.
The standard installation procedure for the PVC pipes is with strong glued sockets, but the BluePump BS system for the casing pump can also be delivered with threaded BOODE PVC pipes, for even more convenient installation, see example on the left.
In case of sandy aquifers, the screens can be upgraded to with the BOODE pre-filter elements: the BOODE PAC - Dual wall P.V.C. screen can be used, to avoid that fine sand will enter in the pipes. This double filter system is easy to install and can be put together on the location.
It now all comes together on you location, directly in a 20ft. container from BOODE: The BluePumps, the BS system with screens (and optional the Dual wall screens; high quality washed filter sand and swelling clay pellets for sealing the borehole).
Just drill and install ...
...
Long trouble-free operation
The FairWater BluePump has a special piston without rubber seals; the water-lock pressure is activated when the piston moves in the stainless steel cylinder.
This means that there are basically no parts to change; maintenance is limited to cleaning of the pump and platform, checking nuts & bolts and applying paint were necessary.
The rising main PVC pipes and screens are high quality products, specificaly made for the BluePump and supplied by BOODE B.V. in the Netherlands.
Strong design, limited low-cost maintenance
The heavy duty bearings are self lubricating and all other parts are in fact "over designed" and need not to be replaced from time to time.
The pump will therefore not stop working due to spare parts wearing out; maintenance is simple and can be done by local people with local available materials and require no special tools, equipment or training.
Estimated lifetime
The lifetime of the pump can only be estimated and is expected to be 10+ years in normal conditions without changing any spare parts.
Replace old handpumps
The pump fits perfect on the old pedestrial of an India pump or an Afridev handpump. In less than a few hours the old pump can be replaced by an BluePump; it can't be easier. One man can do the job in just a few hours, no special toold required.|
The old pedestrial can stay in the concrete and for more stability, the blue box of the BluePump can be fixed into 4 new anchor bolts in a concrete basement that is made around the old pedestrial pipe.
Lease concept maintenance
Due to its reliablity and good performance, the BluePump is very suitable to be used in a lease concept, for instance to replace an old, broken down handpump. In the lease concept, a community is only paying a few hundred dollars for the installation of the pump ( 5 - 10 US$ per family) and later also 5 - 10 US$ per familily per year for the rental and preventive maintenance of the handpump by a Regional Maintenance Team (RMT).
The BluePump represents a new, modern vision for Rural Water Supply:
"... where people have sustainable and reliable access to safe water, with modern and light to use equipment that can be maintained at very low costs ..."
Already over 225 BluePumps installed in 14 countries ...
For more info, mail to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
The BlueZone concept is a modern (business) management model for sustainable water supply for communities in Africa. It has been developed by FairWater as a private sector initiative as a response to the failing VLOM (Village Level Operated & Maintained) management model that has been heavily promoted in the past by NGOs since 1980.
The first BlueZone in Africa is now being successfully implemented in Gambia with Swe-Gam. Other countries are now in preparation (Swaziland, Tanzania, Niger and Burkina).
The BlueZone Concept explained
The BlueZone concept is simple: one single Water Service Provider (WSP) that installs and maintains BluePumps in a large region. Due to economics of scale and other commercial activities of the WSP in the BlueZone, all the BluePumps will we always be operational and maintained at less than 50 US$ per year.
The other commercial activities of the WSP can be for instance; Installation & maintenance of solar systems, diesel pumps, irrigation systems, agricultural equipment, providing seeds, etc. The SWP technicians are constantly be present to give an affordable service at a fair price. The working principle of the BlueZone is, that every working BluePump creates goodwill and other incentives for the WSP. Moreover, all BluePumps are installed by the WSP wilth one year full warrantee.
The business model of the BlueZone is further supported by a steady demand for rehabilitation of old broken down VLOM pumps. It is estimated that in each African country, the demand for rehabilitation will be at a constant rate of at least 200 BluePumps a year. The income from the rehabilitation program will create already enough revenues for the WSP to have a sustainable business and to maintain the already installed BluePumps in the BlueZone for a very low price.
BluePumps at schools and health centres
Water pumps at schools and health centers were always a special concern. It is estimated that in each African country 10 to 20% of the broken handpumps are with schools and health centers. In most countries over 1.000 handpumps at schools and health centres are broken down.
In the BlueZone, these pumps are linked with the WSP at a subsidiary price. The WSP will install and maintain BluePumps at schools and health centres at a reduced rate, due to a small cross-subsidy of his other business in the BlueZone. This creates additional goodwill and therefore additional business. It all creates local jobs and is therefore sustainable. Another major headache solved by the BlueZone approach in a simple way.
How are BluePumps maintained; O&M
A local caretaker from the community is assigned to each BluePump to supervise daily operation and simple maintenance, like tightening nuts and bolts, cleaning of the platform, opening & closing of the pump, etc. The caretaker is appointed by the community and is registrated with the local government as the official contact person for that water point.
The caretaker is paid a small compensation for this, per week, per month or in whatever way that is best suited in the community. In case of a major problem, the caretaker is responsible to call for the BluePump dealer or regional agent who will repair the pump for a fixed price between 25 and 50 US$, only depending on the distance. The fixed repair price is important for the community and the caretaker, because they will know how much to collect for the repair. In this case, the O&M is very transparent and sustainable.
The community has no more worries for repairs or to get spare parts. The BluePump basically does not need any spare parts in the first place, and in the rare case some parts are needed, they will be supplied and installed for free by the regional BluePump support.
The BlueZone concept is sustainable by itself, because all stakeholders have an interest in keeping the pump operational. The regional BluePump support or WSP also has a strong interest to keep all BluePumps in a good working order. When all BluePumps are working, it's good reputation will buzz around and the BluePump dealer will sell more BluePumps, expanding the BlueZone even further.
FairWater assists in setting up the Operation & Maintenance (O&M) in these BlueZones and is monitoring from time to time the performance in the field. If needed, FairWater will do follow-up missions for further training and assistance. In case the BlueZone needs specific materials or new parts (updates of older type of BluePumps) FairWater will provide these parts for free, in collaboration with the local FairWater partners.
BlueZone example
In the Gambia a good and active example can be seen already of the BlueZone Concept. The country dealer Swe-Gam has BluePumps in stock and installs BluePumps with a year warrantee. Already over 50 BluePumps are operational in this BlueZone. Swe-Gam has already a good reputation all over Gambia as the BluePump supplier and support. As a result, the communities and others also start to know of the other products that Swe-Gam has to offer in the rural areas, such as agricultural equipment. Therefore their activities in installing and maintaining BluePumps have a positive spin-of for the company Swe-Gam as a whole.
The advantages of the BlueZone concept are:
- Operational costs are very low (generally less than 50 US$ per year);
- Breakdowns are very unlikely, people have water for life;
- In case of unlikely breakdown, repairs are done quickly & professional, for a fixed & fair price;
- Users will always know exactly what they will have to pay for a repair;
- No need of building up a "repair fund" (this created too many problems in the past);
- The caretaker is motivated because he also makes some money to keep "his" pump in good condition;
- Monitoring of the breakdowns is easy because only one person is responsible;
- The BluePump lifetime can be easily extended with a simple overhaul by the dealer.
What is so special with the BluePump?
The FairWater BluePump is an innovative and new handpump design, using field data why other pumps fail, combined with innovative solutions and modern technologies. After a very severe testing program with the help of Oxfam Kenya and Unicef Mozambique, the final model was released by FairWater in 2011. The BluePumps is now considered by international experts and NGOs as the most effective and reliable handpump on the market. It main advantage is a maintenance free below-ground pump unit without rubber seals, combined with rock-solid box and heavy duty maintenance free bearings. But is will take some time before also decision makers and policy makers will accept that, due to a natural resistance that large organizations have by nature.
BlueZones cannot be introduced in all African countries
We also noticed that it is not possible to start with a BlueZone in all African counries. Sometimes water NGOs still have to go on with outdated approaches for the moment. They continue to donate fragile VLOM pumps that do not last because they prefer or must follow the outdated guidelines of some Governments in Africa that are against new developments for various reasons. The main reason these Governments resist seems protecting the business of some handpump sellers that do not welcome a free competition of better quality products. Examples are for instance Ghana, Gambia, Uganda, Mali and Nigeria.... We regret that, and hope they will finally also join us. Also the communities in these countries should have access to better quality handpumps and make up their own choice what handpump they want to use. That is also "Fair".
Examples of the BluePump design simplicity
- No rubber seals on the piston, means no problems, no maintenance;
- Triple security foot valve system, with a stainless steel ball to deal with the pressure of 100m water in rising main:
- Strong 12mm stainless steel rods, fully threaded: in unlikely case of breaking, rest of rod can still be used;
- Simple, strong & cheap, rod centralizers with secure fit;
- No special tools needed for installation of maintenance;
- etc....
The BluePump design is owned and hosted by the FairWater Foundation who supervises the production and monitoring the performance of all BluePumps in the field. FairWater has an active R&D program to update and improve the design whenever needed. In case of the unlikely event of malfunctions or technical problems, parts are replaced at no cost by FairWater Trustfund through the BluePump central distributor BOODE B.V. in the Netherlands.
How do you start up a BlueZone?
It is in fact rather easy and relatively fast to introduce sustainable water supply in Africa with a BlueZone. The first thing to do is to find a reliable medium-sized WSP company that has already a good record in providing technical services. Contrarily to some popular belief that Africa has no good companies, these reliable and quality companies do exist of course, they are perfect for this kind of business in providing a good service. Preferably a water related company, but can also be a company that sells and repairs cars, as long as they can provide a technical service and have a safe place to store BluePumps.
The next step is to provide the first container with a container of 40 BluePumps. Half of that, 20 pumps, will be installed as demo pumps to replace broken down handpumps in the direct area of the WSP. This will show how the pumps work and create demand. NGOs will see the good results, and start to buy BluePumps directly from the WSP. The WSP starts to make some money already. When the first container is sold out, a new one will be send and sold. Within a few years, there will be a steady flow of containers to the WSP and more and more communities are connected to the BlueZone.
The total cost involved is only € 150.000,- to start-up, and another € 100.000,- to continue the second year. Not that much after all.
After the first year, it will be a self-propelling activity that starts to generate enough local business for the WSP to be maintained without external funding. In the end, that is all what it is about; people become self reliant and have sustainable water for life.
For more information and how to start making BlueZones with the FairWater BluePump contact FairWater
fairwater