safewater

The Problem

1.8 million people die each year from water-borne diseases. The

majority of these individuals are children

under the age of 5.1

Communities rely on water sources including dugouts,

open wells and tanker water with no guarantee of the cleanliness of the water.

Current water testing supplies are1) Too complicated2) Expensive3) Require electricity and other resources not available in many remote areas.

The most common type of water contamination is

microbial, stemming from human or animal feces

mixing with a water source.

SWW

The Innovation

Kits that are field-ready for microbial water testing.

Testing Components

SWW

10 ml Colilert Presence/Absence

Test

1 ml Petrifilm EnumerativeTest

5 ml Easygel Enumerative Test

10 ml H2S Presence/Absence

Test

Packaged in: Also including:

Flashlight(UV), Field Notebook, Use Instructions, Batteries, Sharpies, Whirlpack Collection Bags, Waste Belt Incubator

The Competition

Current Testing Methods

Other Kit Producers

SWW

Safe Water World

improves on current models

Quanti-Tray-Expensive setup and per test cost-Incubation required

Membrane Filtration-Complicated Execution-Heavy and expensive filtration device-Incubation required

Low cost Easy to use and read results Portable No incubation required Instructions provided and built in

support system!

Feasibility

Potential Market

Large Inter-governmental

Agencies

Non-Profits

Student/University Groups

SWW

To Date

Interest in Alpha Kits from 4 DUSP Students for summer 2011

Established contacts in relevant departments in Red Cross, Oxfam, UNICEF, OECD

Solidified Community Partnership and identified early adopter organizations

Potential Impact? Billions

Pure Home WaterOur community

partner

Developing Countries Worldwide

SWW

• Assist in new campaign to identify contaminated water sources around Tamale

• Potential Impact ~ 350,000 people

• Assist aide agencies in determining areas of focus and measurements of improvement

• Empower communities to identify poor water sources and seek improvements

The Team

Name Background

Future RoleSWW

Not Pictured: CEE Senior Lecturer, Susan Murcott-Team Advisor

Samantha O’Keefe

Philip Wolfe

Dr. Afreen Siddiqi

• MIT 2009, B.S. Civil and Environmental Eng.

• Research on microbial methods and appropriate technologies in developing countries

• Outreach/Marketing Alpha Kits to MIT Community

• On campus trainings and kit assembly

• Team leader

• Duke 2008, B.S. Mechanical Eng., B.A. History

• EWB experience in Uganda, rainwater catchment, water testing

• Modification of kit design based on user feedback

• Develop quality assurance checks

• Non-profit marketing

• B.S. Mech E., M. S and PhD. Aero/Astro MIT

• Research from a CLIOS perspective on water systems in developing countries

• International supply chain coordination

• Outreach and pitches to inter-governmental clients