21 Apr
2012
Parag and I went to check out the ragpicker livelihood products being designed by MIT-Pune Design students with Vimo Sewa. A ragpicker is not a doorstep wastecollector, but refers to the people who scavenge for resellables in the trash, and then take it to scrap shops. Some take it home for segregation since they can get a higher rate. Some hire rickshaws to then transport sacks of waste stored at their home, to the scrapdealer.
We met Kanksha who showed us the goods in their top floor storage room. Apparently the group came to Ahmedabad and did a needs assessment. They identified needs for a collection device, a device for collecting paper without bending down, and a handrake to minimize hand contact with the rake.
Parag is discussing with them, and MIT-Pune to see what role ICP can play in this.
Cart
Design
Cart is made of bamboo with steel pipe connections that are screwed into the bamboo. The connections are not strong (could be due to missing screw, or bad quality) and this leaves the cart frame wobbly.
The frame is covered in woven fabric, similar to lawn chairs, with a heavy cotton-looking cloth covering it.
The wheel assembly was identical to the Swaach design made by MIT-Pune for waste collection. It is an efficient and light wheel assembly utilizing motorcycle rims, tires, a specially-made rim with 2 covered bearings on each wheel. The axle is a hollow tube. This assembly can carry much more weight than a ragpicker would carry and would be around 5000Rs to produce.
Trials
They tested the cart in a couple places over a 1 day period.
The response according to Kanksha was:
- Cart was too big. It was not able to maneuver where it needed to go
- The cloth became soggy from water and then destroyed dry wastes.
- Storage of the cart was not easy.
Accessories: Handrake and Rod
Design
Here they did a typical give them a bunch of slightly different versions of each accessory, and see which ones work best. For rods, they were trying different handles, and different pick-up methods. They tried rebar with a sharpened end as well as one that had a spring action plastic extension for sticking through the paper. The handrakes had different handles and different types of teeth. They also had a couple they had welded specially for the purpose.
Trials
They tested the different accesories with 10 different ragpickers over 11 days.
Two handrakes were liked, both with longer teeth and comfortable handles.
The rod was not liked in general. People were afraid of taking these things with them for fear of being stolen.
Also they had no where to keep these accessories while on the streets.
