[Stoves] GEC

Crispin Pemberton-Pigott crispinpigott at gmail.com
Sat Mar 31 02:03:06 CDT 2012


Dear Richard Almost in Guatemala

 

This is a little bit about Chad's programme and a little about yours.

 

If people could please support the Nat Geo initiative it would always help.
Show up and click on a few things and tell your friends. There are very few
initiatives that support pro-poor energy policies, compared with the
largesse that flows to energy for the rich. The disparity has always been a
sore point for appropriate technologists as many of us know.

 

>Indications are very good thus far.  

 

That is good news. Who/what is your counterpart organisation?

 

>The trick will not be a technical hurdle or even a resource source hurdle
there: Its going to be all about defining real need /cultural acceptance and
empowerment of groups whom are not used to being empowered --and how that
all will work within the culture--long after the donor cameras have left the
scene.

 

Yebo. ("yes in Zulu")

 

>I wanted to also mention that technically one of the big challenges it to
devise a simple grinder chopper device that will work for their resources. 

 

The first comment from Prof Annegarn on that and me is that NDE is exactly
the place to develop such a device. Several devices for chopping and for
grinding cassava were brought to SD-land, to the agric research centre in
Malkerns. There was obviously a difference in approach to 'A-T devices' for
local manufacture. There is no way we could copy them for local use as they
would not have lasted long enough to secure the reputation of the vendor.

 

It is partly a cultural thing (people expect it to last if they pay for it)
and partly exposure to old British technology that was used by the trading
stores 'back in the day'. Those things are still around. India is full of
copies of such technologies. My question to you is where are the Guatemalans
on this scale? 

 

>Lee Hite  of Engineers without Borders (professional chapter) in Cincinatti
developed a bio chop and bio grind device (see
http://home.fuse.net/engineering/) which gets pretty close . 

 

See the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5solgSYXeJ0 - very good.

 

Something I have noticed is the use of a lot of wood on these constructions
(presses and grinders). Most communities I have worked with do not have
access to such nice large pieces of wood. The comment 'it can be made
without welding' is odd in that welding is one of the near-universally
available skills in fuel-deprived areas that might be interested in biomass
briquettes. The reason the fuel is short is because there are so many people
and where there are people there is transportation which means vehicle
repairs which means welding.

 

There seems to be lots of room for cooperation on new presses and grinders.

 

Sala kakuhle (only because I have been in the Eastern Cape)

Crispin

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