Flow Solutions

We build manually pressurized water storage tanks, providing running water infrastructure for those lacking access.

2.4 billion people do not have access to running water. This is a major obstacle in efforts to combat preventable diseases and improve efficient water consumption. Without pressurized water, it is very difficult to wash hands and dishes, making sanitation harder and harder to achieve. In India alone, 800 million people lack access to proper sanitation and as a result, 140,000 children there die from diarrheal diseases each year. As it stands, running water solutions are viewed as a matter of complex and expensive infrastructure, which prevents projects from taking off. We want to change that.

We believe that by providing micro-running water products at the household or multi-household scale, we will sidestep infrastructural challenges, and lead the way towards further development of running water systems. In doing so, we can improve communities’ abilities to consume and dispose of water in a more sustainable, sanitary manner. Additionally, water needs are unique in every community. For this reason, we are building local organizations of people who know the problem best in their own region. Feedback and input from engineers, manufacturers, community leaders, and users of our products allow us to constantly improve and develop our solutions.

This product will impact the 800 million people in India who live without running water. Currently, clean water is retrieved from off-premise sources and stored in several buckets in the home. Daily activities requiring water such as bathing, cooking, and cleaning all derive water from the bucket source. This cross-contamination causes water borne illness. Our product will keep water safe and allow consumption to be accessible and efficient.

We sell to large organizations and distribute through water companies working in the same space as our target demographic. We have already partnered with one such company, FORCE (http://force.org.in/).

By recording number of tanks sold to households, we can multiply the average household size by this and get an accurate measurement. - Providing people with accessible running water infrastructure.

Partners we have made, like the India Sanitation Coalition, can help us measure the changed frequency with which hand washing occurs through diff in diff survey studies. - Improving frequency of hand-washing and sanitary practices.

Observation of how much water is being used and wasted on a daily basis currently, and comparing that with families using our tanks. - Improving water efficiency.

The safe-water ecosystem encompasses water availability, filtration, delivery, storage, consumption, and waste. Most organizations around the world focus on availability, filtration, delivery, and waste, whereas we focus on the storage and consumption facets. Our patented technology allows us to provide running water infrastructure at a low-cost for consumers. 

Our solutions go beyond one tangible product. We envision a network of groups with local knowledge that utilize our capital and experience to build low-cost micro running water systems around the world.  

Water needs are unique in every community. For this reason, we are building local and sustainable organizations of people who know the problem best in their areas. Feedback and input from local engineers, manufacturers, community leaders, and users of our products allow us to constantly improve and develop better solutions that fit their specific needs.

We surveyed 60 families from two different camps in Delhi to find a desired price for the consumer. Our price is feasible given manufacturing capabilities in India and our design specifications. Our goal is to first sell to larger organizations whose missions align with ours, that do work in the water and sanitation space in India.

We’ve partnered with FORCE, a non profit organization which has provided off-premise clean water to over one million people in India. This partnership allows us access to their extensive distribution channels in our target customer demographic.

We have raised around $15,000 through university grants and a crowdfunding campaign. Using this money, we've built multiple prototypes, incorporated our business, filed for a provisional patent, purchased design software, and funded 4 phases of prototype testing in India. Our next phase will require us to raise seed funding through grants or investment that will help us purchase CAD dyes necessary for commercial manufacturing.

Price, especially outside of India. While we’ve been able to pinpoint a feasible price in the Indian market, this will be more challenging in parts of the world we want to serve that have lower levels of income. Additionally, there are certain conditions that need to already exist in order for our product to be useful, namely the availability of a clean water source. However, as we grow and get to know our customers, we hope to move into the space of cleaning water with our products as well.

https://www.facebook.com/flowsolutionsinc/

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/flow-solutions-india-water#/

I believe the problem we are addressing cannot wait to be solved. While people are dying from this, few solutions are being made. We are sitting on top of an idea that has the potential to improve the lives of millions of people, and the way running water is generated around the world. While our idea has potential, we need Solve's expertise, resources, and network to really make it lift off. I want to a Solver because I am an entrepreneur who is passionate about social innovation. The community of Solve will help me turn my visions into realities.  

TGELF, FORCE, India Sanitation Coalition, Swearer Center at Brown University.

We have 0 competition. Orgs focus on entirely different facets of clean water ecosystem than us.