ghanasan - Water Services Trust Fund
GHANASAN
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
1
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Ghanasan project is a collaboration between Unilever, Water and Sanitation for the Urban Poor (WSUP), and IDEO to develop new products and services for in-home sanitation in Kumasi, Ghana. The project aims to address the barriers that prevent 1 billion people in urban areas from accessing adequate sanitary facilities. These include insecure or non-existent land tenure, cramped living conditions and poor access to finance. The project team used the Human Centered Design process to better understand the needs and aspirations of people in the city and identify potential solutions to the challenges they face. An overview of the research and methods used in this process has been made public on www.ghanasan.com to engage and inspire the sanitation community at large to participate in the project. This document presents the product design direction and suggestions for the service design to pursue for further development and pilot testing in the field.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
2
THIS TOILET HAS BROUGHT HONOR AND DIGNITY TO OUR FAMILY. -MOHAMMED, ALABAR
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
3
HAVING A TOILET IN THE HOME IS GREAT FOR EMERGENCIES... YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN YOU HAVE TO GO. -STELLA AND FAMILY, KOTEI Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
4
RESEARCH OVERVIEW
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
5
RESEARCH OVERVIEW Human Centered Design: Understanding people’s needs and desires to identify new solutions that will be desirable, feasible, and viable.
PHASE ONE: NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR URBAN SANITATION For the first six weeks of our collaboration, we focused on uncovering new opportunities for providing in-home sanitation to the urban poor. In order to better understand the end-users’ challenges and aspirations, our team conducted interviews on the individual, community, and civic level. We used research tools such as inspiration cards, observations, shadowing, and storytelling to gain a deeper understanding of their day-to-day lives and sanitation needs and preferences. Additionally, the OpenIDEO community and the project team worked together to share inspirations and generate concepts, working together to uncover unmet opportunities in urban sanitation.
PHASE TWO: PROTOTYPING AND OVERALL DESIGN DIRECTION Building upon our work from Phase One, we spent the second six weeks building and refining prototypes of our early ideas and incorporating the learnings from those prototypes into the designs presented in this document. We brought with us to Kumasi four toilet prototypes, each designed to test a different functional approach to collecting and removing waste from the home. We left each toilet with a family for several days, returning afterward to gather the family’s feedback, collect and clean the toilets, and repeat the test with a new families. Additionally, we sought to understand users’ preferences regarding placement in the home, service and maintenance, branding and marketing, and pricing and purchase. The following pages represent an overview of the key learnings from Phase Two, followed by our recommendations for the overall product design, design variations, service, branding and pilot testing.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
6
TOILET FUNCTIONALITY
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
7
THIS WOULD BE GREAT FOR MY ELDERLY MOTHER, BUT IT’S TOO COMPLICATED. IT SHOULD BE SO SIMPLE THAT NOBODY COULD MESS IT UP. -HAIJA, ALABAR
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
8
TOILET FUNCTIONALITY
• IN-HOME SANITATION IS INHERENTLY ASPIRATIONAL, WITH OR WITHOUT WATER • MOVING PARTS AND SEALS ARE TOO FRAGILE FOR LONG-TERM USE • COMPLEXITY OF WATER-FLUSH CAUSES CONFUSION AND DISCOURAGES USE • WATER AND URINE OVERFILL TOILETS QUICKLY • URINE DIVERSION IS READILY ACCEPTED AND UNDERSTOOD • SIZE, MATERIALS, AND STRUCTURE ARE IMPORTANT INDICATORS OF VALUE • TOILETS ARE IN REGULAR CONTACT WITH WATER, BOTH INSIDE AND OUT
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
9
THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I’VE FELT COMFORTABLE SITTING ON A TOILET SINCE GRADE SCHOOL. -KAMAL, ALABAR Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
10
PLACEMENT IN THE HOME
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
11
PLACEMENT IN THE HOME
• MOST COMPOUNDS IN KUMASI HAVE SPACE FOR TOILETS • FAMILIES ARE WILLING TO SHARE WITHIN THE COMPOUND • BATHROOMS HAVE DRAIN TO STREET GUTTER • BATHROOMS ARE WET AND HAVE SLOPED FLOORS • FLOORS ARE ROUGH AND SCUFF BOTTOM OF TOILET
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
12
IT’S GOOD BUT IT’S TOO SMALL. WE’D NEED AT LEAST TWO FOR OUR FAMILY. -HARUNA’S FAMILY, ALABAR
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
13
SERVICE AND MAINTENANCE
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
14
SERVICE AND MAINTENANCE
• MOST PEOPLE DON’T TRUST SERVICE IN GHANA, AND WANT TO ‘SEE IT TO BELIEVE IT’ • SIGNIFICANT EDUCATION AND OVERSIGHT WILL BE REQUIRED TO ENSURE PROPER SERVICE • WOMEN CLEAN IN-HOME TOILETS FREQUENTLY WITH WATER OR LOCAL DETERGENTS • FAMILIES HAD NO OBJECTION TO SERVICE PERSON COMING INTO THEIR HOMES • UNIFORMS SIGNIFY QUALITY AND DEPENDABILITY
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
15
I DON’T TRUST SERVICE PEOPLE, SO I’D HAVE TO SEE THE SERVICE TO BELIEVE IT. -LANDLORD, KOTEI
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
16
BRANDING AND MARKETING
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
17
BRANDING AND MARKETING
• ‘CLEAN TEAM’ WAS THE FAVORITE NAME BY FAR • PRIVATE SERVICES ARE TRUSTED MORE THAN PUBLIC ONES • CORPORATIONS ARE TRUSTED MORE THAN INDIVIDUALS • CONVENIENCE AND EMERGENCY ACCESS ARE KEY BENEFITS • LOCAL LEADERS ARE POWERFUL VOICES IN THE COMMUNITY
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
18
THIS IS NOT A SIMPLE PROBLEM, IT WILL HAVE TO TAKE A GOOD TEAM TO DO IT WELL. - RESIDENTS IN ALABAR Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
19
PRICING AND PURCHASING
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
20
PRICING AND PURCHASING
• SHARING PAYMENTS IS DIFFICULT, BUT NOT IMPOSSIBLE • SAVING IS TOUGH, SO FREQUENT PAYMENTS ARE PREFERRED • FIRST MONTH FREE HELPS PEOPLE OVERCOME WORRIES • PEOPLE ARE USED TO NEGOTIATING FOR SERVICES • IT’S HARD FOR MANY FAMILIES TO COMPARE PRICING TO THE PUBLIC TOILETS
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
21
IT’S GOT TO BE CHEAP. AND IT’D BE BEST IF WE COULD PAY EVERY DAY... IT’S HARD TO SAVE IN AFRICA! -FAMILY, ALABAR
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
22
DESIGN PRINCIPLES
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
23
PRODUCT
SERVICE
Simplicity trumps features.
Professional and organized. It takes a team.
The toilet should be intuitive to use without instruction. Water pumps and seals are set up for failure and misuse, especially from outside visitors and children.
People trust a service with a central office that can be held accountable. Small, local or public services have a bad reputation for getting things done.
The simple visual of people working together struck a chord. People understand the importance of this service and that it needs a coordinated team to be successful.
Sturdy and familiar.
Create routine.
Visualize benefits.
People aspire to owning what we think of as the “classic” toilet. Camping sized seats and unstable bases are both hard to use and not trusted. The final design should look and feel like a robust fixture in the home, and feature a full sized seat.
People naturally think in weekly increments. Regular pickups, when possible, are easier to plan for and organize around.
Communicating the value of the service and its cost to customers will require education and visualization of the long term benefits and convenience compared to using public toilets.
Take out the urine.
People are used to paying very small amounts at the public toilet. The service will need to accommodate frequent small payments.
People will naturally urinate while using these toilets. Diverting the urine to a separate container or the gutter reduces smell, saves volume and reduces the overall servicing cost.
Discourage tampering. Prevent illegal disposal of the waste by securing the tank to the toilet. The tank should be designed to interface seamlessly with the IBC/disposal site.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
Pay incrementally.
See it to believe it.
BRAND
Communicate credibility. When it comes to products and services, people favor visual consistency and professionalism over local aesthetics and craft.
Due to a history of bad service experiences, people resonate strongly with the idea of trying out the toilet in their home for the first month before paying for a regular service pickup.
24
BASIC SERVICE MODEL
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
25
SERVICE MODEL 01 05
Waste used to generate electricity or create fertilizer to sustain and grow local business.
Branded household toilet with bio-digester chemical and removable waste container.
02
Local franchised operator provides household waste collection service.
04
Vacuum truck services local transfer tanks.
03
Waste taken to neighborhood transfer tank for interim storage.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
26
BRANDING
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
27
NAME AND LOGO Badge is meant to be placed on the toilet and accompanying products.
The team mark can stand on its own, and be embossed or stenciled as needed.
The script should stand alone when used on the uniform of a service person.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
28
UNIFORM AND EQUIPMENT
SERVICE ASSOCIATE
Makes financial and scheduling arrangements with families. Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
SERVICE PERSON
Replaces the waste tank and cleans toilet surfaces. 29
OVERALL TOILET DESIGN
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
30
WET URINE DIVERSION TOILET Based on feedback received in Ghana, our conclusion is that a urine diverting toilet in combination with a bio-digestor and removable sealed waste tank is our best option.
Standard size toilet seat comfortably fits even larger users.
Urine diversion comes out back with flexible tube.
Shortened base allows room for feet. Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
31
Seat hinges on sides to simplify cleaning.
Lid blocks smell and insects when closed.
Wide hole funnels waste into tank below.
Urine is diverted to tube and out to gutter/outdoor collection.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
32
TANK REMOVAL
Top half of toilet unlocks and hinges up, allowing tank to be hygienically sealed and removed by service person.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
33
WASTE TANK
Tanks stack for shipping, transport, and storage.
Smooth rounded shape allows easy cleaning and evacuation of waste. Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
34
THANK YOU
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
35
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
1
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Ghanasan project is a collaboration between Unilever, Water and Sanitation for the Urban Poor (WSUP), and IDEO to develop new products and services for in-home sanitation in Kumasi, Ghana. The project aims to address the barriers that prevent 1 billion people in urban areas from accessing adequate sanitary facilities. These include insecure or non-existent land tenure, cramped living conditions and poor access to finance. The project team used the Human Centered Design process to better understand the needs and aspirations of people in the city and identify potential solutions to the challenges they face. An overview of the research and methods used in this process has been made public on www.ghanasan.com to engage and inspire the sanitation community at large to participate in the project. This document presents the product design direction and suggestions for the service design to pursue for further development and pilot testing in the field.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
2
THIS TOILET HAS BROUGHT HONOR AND DIGNITY TO OUR FAMILY. -MOHAMMED, ALABAR
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
3
HAVING A TOILET IN THE HOME IS GREAT FOR EMERGENCIES... YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN YOU HAVE TO GO. -STELLA AND FAMILY, KOTEI Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
4
RESEARCH OVERVIEW
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
5
RESEARCH OVERVIEW Human Centered Design: Understanding people’s needs and desires to identify new solutions that will be desirable, feasible, and viable.
PHASE ONE: NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR URBAN SANITATION For the first six weeks of our collaboration, we focused on uncovering new opportunities for providing in-home sanitation to the urban poor. In order to better understand the end-users’ challenges and aspirations, our team conducted interviews on the individual, community, and civic level. We used research tools such as inspiration cards, observations, shadowing, and storytelling to gain a deeper understanding of their day-to-day lives and sanitation needs and preferences. Additionally, the OpenIDEO community and the project team worked together to share inspirations and generate concepts, working together to uncover unmet opportunities in urban sanitation.
PHASE TWO: PROTOTYPING AND OVERALL DESIGN DIRECTION Building upon our work from Phase One, we spent the second six weeks building and refining prototypes of our early ideas and incorporating the learnings from those prototypes into the designs presented in this document. We brought with us to Kumasi four toilet prototypes, each designed to test a different functional approach to collecting and removing waste from the home. We left each toilet with a family for several days, returning afterward to gather the family’s feedback, collect and clean the toilets, and repeat the test with a new families. Additionally, we sought to understand users’ preferences regarding placement in the home, service and maintenance, branding and marketing, and pricing and purchase. The following pages represent an overview of the key learnings from Phase Two, followed by our recommendations for the overall product design, design variations, service, branding and pilot testing.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
6
TOILET FUNCTIONALITY
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
7
THIS WOULD BE GREAT FOR MY ELDERLY MOTHER, BUT IT’S TOO COMPLICATED. IT SHOULD BE SO SIMPLE THAT NOBODY COULD MESS IT UP. -HAIJA, ALABAR
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
8
TOILET FUNCTIONALITY
• IN-HOME SANITATION IS INHERENTLY ASPIRATIONAL, WITH OR WITHOUT WATER • MOVING PARTS AND SEALS ARE TOO FRAGILE FOR LONG-TERM USE • COMPLEXITY OF WATER-FLUSH CAUSES CONFUSION AND DISCOURAGES USE • WATER AND URINE OVERFILL TOILETS QUICKLY • URINE DIVERSION IS READILY ACCEPTED AND UNDERSTOOD • SIZE, MATERIALS, AND STRUCTURE ARE IMPORTANT INDICATORS OF VALUE • TOILETS ARE IN REGULAR CONTACT WITH WATER, BOTH INSIDE AND OUT
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
9
THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I’VE FELT COMFORTABLE SITTING ON A TOILET SINCE GRADE SCHOOL. -KAMAL, ALABAR Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
10
PLACEMENT IN THE HOME
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
11
PLACEMENT IN THE HOME
• MOST COMPOUNDS IN KUMASI HAVE SPACE FOR TOILETS • FAMILIES ARE WILLING TO SHARE WITHIN THE COMPOUND • BATHROOMS HAVE DRAIN TO STREET GUTTER • BATHROOMS ARE WET AND HAVE SLOPED FLOORS • FLOORS ARE ROUGH AND SCUFF BOTTOM OF TOILET
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
12
IT’S GOOD BUT IT’S TOO SMALL. WE’D NEED AT LEAST TWO FOR OUR FAMILY. -HARUNA’S FAMILY, ALABAR
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
13
SERVICE AND MAINTENANCE
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
14
SERVICE AND MAINTENANCE
• MOST PEOPLE DON’T TRUST SERVICE IN GHANA, AND WANT TO ‘SEE IT TO BELIEVE IT’ • SIGNIFICANT EDUCATION AND OVERSIGHT WILL BE REQUIRED TO ENSURE PROPER SERVICE • WOMEN CLEAN IN-HOME TOILETS FREQUENTLY WITH WATER OR LOCAL DETERGENTS • FAMILIES HAD NO OBJECTION TO SERVICE PERSON COMING INTO THEIR HOMES • UNIFORMS SIGNIFY QUALITY AND DEPENDABILITY
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
15
I DON’T TRUST SERVICE PEOPLE, SO I’D HAVE TO SEE THE SERVICE TO BELIEVE IT. -LANDLORD, KOTEI
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
16
BRANDING AND MARKETING
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
17
BRANDING AND MARKETING
• ‘CLEAN TEAM’ WAS THE FAVORITE NAME BY FAR • PRIVATE SERVICES ARE TRUSTED MORE THAN PUBLIC ONES • CORPORATIONS ARE TRUSTED MORE THAN INDIVIDUALS • CONVENIENCE AND EMERGENCY ACCESS ARE KEY BENEFITS • LOCAL LEADERS ARE POWERFUL VOICES IN THE COMMUNITY
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
18
THIS IS NOT A SIMPLE PROBLEM, IT WILL HAVE TO TAKE A GOOD TEAM TO DO IT WELL. - RESIDENTS IN ALABAR Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
19
PRICING AND PURCHASING
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
20
PRICING AND PURCHASING
• SHARING PAYMENTS IS DIFFICULT, BUT NOT IMPOSSIBLE • SAVING IS TOUGH, SO FREQUENT PAYMENTS ARE PREFERRED • FIRST MONTH FREE HELPS PEOPLE OVERCOME WORRIES • PEOPLE ARE USED TO NEGOTIATING FOR SERVICES • IT’S HARD FOR MANY FAMILIES TO COMPARE PRICING TO THE PUBLIC TOILETS
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
21
IT’S GOT TO BE CHEAP. AND IT’D BE BEST IF WE COULD PAY EVERY DAY... IT’S HARD TO SAVE IN AFRICA! -FAMILY, ALABAR
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
22
DESIGN PRINCIPLES
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
23
PRODUCT
SERVICE
Simplicity trumps features.
Professional and organized. It takes a team.
The toilet should be intuitive to use without instruction. Water pumps and seals are set up for failure and misuse, especially from outside visitors and children.
People trust a service with a central office that can be held accountable. Small, local or public services have a bad reputation for getting things done.
The simple visual of people working together struck a chord. People understand the importance of this service and that it needs a coordinated team to be successful.
Sturdy and familiar.
Create routine.
Visualize benefits.
People aspire to owning what we think of as the “classic” toilet. Camping sized seats and unstable bases are both hard to use and not trusted. The final design should look and feel like a robust fixture in the home, and feature a full sized seat.
People naturally think in weekly increments. Regular pickups, when possible, are easier to plan for and organize around.
Communicating the value of the service and its cost to customers will require education and visualization of the long term benefits and convenience compared to using public toilets.
Take out the urine.
People are used to paying very small amounts at the public toilet. The service will need to accommodate frequent small payments.
People will naturally urinate while using these toilets. Diverting the urine to a separate container or the gutter reduces smell, saves volume and reduces the overall servicing cost.
Discourage tampering. Prevent illegal disposal of the waste by securing the tank to the toilet. The tank should be designed to interface seamlessly with the IBC/disposal site.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
Pay incrementally.
See it to believe it.
BRAND
Communicate credibility. When it comes to products and services, people favor visual consistency and professionalism over local aesthetics and craft.
Due to a history of bad service experiences, people resonate strongly with the idea of trying out the toilet in their home for the first month before paying for a regular service pickup.
24
BASIC SERVICE MODEL
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
25
SERVICE MODEL 01 05
Waste used to generate electricity or create fertilizer to sustain and grow local business.
Branded household toilet with bio-digester chemical and removable waste container.
02
Local franchised operator provides household waste collection service.
04
Vacuum truck services local transfer tanks.
03
Waste taken to neighborhood transfer tank for interim storage.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
26
BRANDING
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
27
NAME AND LOGO Badge is meant to be placed on the toilet and accompanying products.
The team mark can stand on its own, and be embossed or stenciled as needed.
The script should stand alone when used on the uniform of a service person.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
28
UNIFORM AND EQUIPMENT
SERVICE ASSOCIATE
Makes financial and scheduling arrangements with families. Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
SERVICE PERSON
Replaces the waste tank and cleans toilet surfaces. 29
OVERALL TOILET DESIGN
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
30
WET URINE DIVERSION TOILET Based on feedback received in Ghana, our conclusion is that a urine diverting toilet in combination with a bio-digestor and removable sealed waste tank is our best option.
Standard size toilet seat comfortably fits even larger users.
Urine diversion comes out back with flexible tube.
Shortened base allows room for feet. Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
31
Seat hinges on sides to simplify cleaning.
Lid blocks smell and insects when closed.
Wide hole funnels waste into tank below.
Urine is diverted to tube and out to gutter/outdoor collection.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
32
TANK REMOVAL
Top half of toilet unlocks and hinges up, allowing tank to be hygienically sealed and removed by service person.
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
33
WASTE TANK
Tanks stack for shipping, transport, and storage.
Smooth rounded shape allows easy cleaning and evacuation of waste. Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
34
THANK YOU
Unilever + WSUP + IDEO
35
