70 litres of water on wheels
The AguaPallet is a hollow rotationally moulded pallet for delivering humanitarian aid, that can be transformed into a hand cart and a mobile water container. Containing up to 70 litres of water, an AguaPallet can supply enough water in a single trip for a family for a whole day.
Using AguaPallets to transport aid also improves logistical efficiency because the pallet itself, normally a logistical overhead, is part of the final aid package.
For the most up to date news on progress, please visit the AguaPallet Project website. The AP5 Release version of the AguaPallet, can now be downloaded from here.
A BRIEF PROJECT HISTORY
2014
In 2014 Shaun and Moira were co-winners of the Socialab and UNICEF Global Innovation Challenge ‘The First 72 Hours’.
UNICEF were looking for ideas to help people in the first 72 hours after a disaster. The competition drew about 300 entries from 50 countries and went through 3 rounds of eliminations before ending in a final pitch to a panel of experts. UNICEF provided much needed seed funding to get us underway, which we used to build a proof of concept prototype.
2015
We welcomed the Auckland University of Technology (AUT) School of Engineering to the team, who provide much needed depth in mechanical engineering. The AguaPallet was used by AUT as a student design project, where 150 students in 30 teams of 5 looked at the design challenges of one of 3 different end use scenarios. Some of this creative work is showcased on the blog page.
In 2015 LoooP Creative Ltd and the AguaPallet Project was accepted onto the Autodesk Entrepreneur Impact Partner Program, which has supplied us with an incredible suite of product design software and great networking opportunities with other companies and individuals doing like-minded work.
2016
In 2016 the AguaPallet Project was selected as a finalist in the ASME ISHOW innovation competition held in Washington DC. This global competition is run by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and is for product ideas that have social impact. The AguaPallet came 2nd in the fan-favourite social voting stage of the competition, which was a huge confidence boost for the team going into the final pitching event in mid-June.
A further student project in 2016 helped refine the Pallet component.
2017
The main focus of 2017 was the development of the AP5 Release version of the AguaPallet, which can be downloaded from here.
The AP5 version became a finalist in the New Zealand Best Awards under the Public Good category.