Fibercation Final Report Contributors: David Carrega Binu Krishnan Jinesh Jose Jasen Mehta

Table of Contents Statements of Purpose Solution Description Design Approach Ethical Plan Major Team Challenges Future Directions Appendix i: List of Stakeholders Appendix ii: Interview Transcript Appendix iii: Failed Prototype Appendix iv: Prototype

Statements of Purpose

Mission Statement Powered by innovation and guided by integrity, we help our customers optimize the value of their banana stalks.

Company Culture Statement We are committed to dealing honestly and fairly with our employees, customers, suppliers, shareholders, and the communities in which we live and work.

Problem Statement The high cost of existing machinery prevents banana farmers from transforming their stalks into more useful material that could improve their economic wellbeing.

Solution Description Product Description

A low cost fiber extracting device

Key Business Goal To create an affordable tool that creates more utility than compost for rural farmers.

Target Market 1. Indian Farming Cooperatives Farming cooperatives have enough members to make banana fiber extraction a profitable venture. 2. Stakeholders Stakeholders could purchase our product and distribute it to strategic locations.

Secondary Markets 1. Farming Cooperatives Outside of India Bananas can be grown in any tropical environment. The Philippines, Ecuador, Brazil, Indonesia, and Mexico are possible countries of interest.

The Main Challenges 1. Banana Farms Are Not Conveniently Located The transport of banana stalks to treatment facilities is currently the biggest contributor to the current cost of banana fiber. Our product does not solve this pain point, and we do not see any banana fiber extraction as a viable business until the distribution of banana stalks is solved.

2. Lack of Awareness Most rural farmers are unaware of existing cooperatives and technology.

Design Approach Customer Participation

Jinesh and Binu interviewed a variety of farmers. Jasen and I initiated contact with some stakeholders. The key takeaways were that the product has to be cheap and the banana stalk should be processed at a central location.

Cultural Sensitivity Our product poses no major threat to the existing banana farming and banana fiber craft cultures.

Manufacturability Our product will consist of an instructional booklet with parts. All of the parts are repurposed plumbing parts that are readily available in India. The buyer of our product will have to assemble it himself. This strategy dramatically reduces the cost of our product.

Low Cost Strategies 1. Customer Assembly Eliminating assembly workers will reduce the price of labor. In addition, the configuration of the parts in our packaging will optimize space to minimize the cost of shipping. 2. Options for Power Source The power cluster of our product schematic is compatible with any power source via a belt driving system. It is our belief that bicycle power is the best option for our customers, but we have given them the power to choose. 3. Bushings We chose bushings over bearings because of a cost issue.

Human Factors and Reliability 1. Design for Disassembly All of the moving parts are easily removed from the casing for cleaning. 2. Adjustable Blade Height The height of the blade is adjustable so that our product can extract fiber from a variety of plants. 3. Compact Device The product is roughly 12” x 12”. The customer can clamp it down wherever he wants.

Distribution of Product The distribution channel has not been determined. We hope to collaborate with local stakeholders and have them distribute our product for us.

Sustainability Issues Banana fiber extraction is inherently environmentally sustainable. However, there are four business sustainability issues. 1. No Banana Stalk Distribution Network Exists 2. No Banana Fiber Collective Exists 3. We Have No Contacts with Clothing Manufacturers 4. No Popular Clothing is Currently Made from Banana fiber

Ethical Plan Culture Statement

We are committed to dealing honestly and fairly with our employees, customers, suppliers, shareholders, and the communities in which we live and work.

Our Vision Powered by innovation and guided by integrity, we help our customers optimize the value of their banana stalks.

Our Values 1. Do the Right Thing 2. Respect Others 3. Perform with Excellence

Reporting Violations 1. Report All Violations 2. When in Doubt, Ask 3. Depending on the Circumstances, Failure to Report an Ethics Violation Could Itself Be a Violation

Who is Accountable? Our code applies to all members of Fibercation.

Major Team Challenges Team America

1. Scheduling Issues Jasen did not adhere to the meeting schedule. For example, he would consistently postpone our meetings by an hour or two by texting the other thirty minutes before the designated meeting time. The lack of respect for the schedules of the other member decreased productivity. 2. Harold Martin This project would have benefitted greatly from his presence. 3. Lack of Electricity Jasen has been living without electricity for the past week. Some of the CAD files that should be in this paper are on his desktop.

Team India 1. Connectivity We were unable to connect via Skype, Gchat, or email consistently.

Future Steps Immediate Plan of Action

1. Demonstrate Prototype To promote awareness, we have to demonstrate the prototype. This could be done live in outdoor markets throughout Kerala. 2. Consult with Stakeholders Although we have done quite a bit of research within the past 10 weeks, we still need more information. The stakeholders within Kerala know the region better, so it seems natural to consult with them. Perhaps stakeholders promoting women causes could use our product to create jobs for women.

Stakeholders Kottapuram Integrated Development Society (KIDS) Agricultural Research Group www.kidskerala.org kidskottapuram@gmail.com Contact: Sunny George, Head of Research Analysis

TREC STEP Indian Entrepreneurial Incubator http://www.trecstep.com/ jawa_ts@yahoo.com Agrobazar An organic farming collective http://www.agrobazaarindia.com/ Kudumbasree A government organization that promotes jobs for women http://www.kudumbashree.org/

Janasree An organization that promotes jobs for men and women http://janasreeonline.com/

Interview Transcript Team America Wrote the Questions Team India Answered Jasen Commented in Red RURAL FARMERS (Start with general and get more specific..tip when formatting) 1. How much do plantation laborers make a day? Rs.200 2. How much of this income is disposable? about Rs.70 3. What is the typical schedule of a plantation worker? Does it vary seasonally? from 8 am to 5pm, it varies seasonally 4. When is the banana harvest in Kerala? that depends on the variety, mainly in festival seasons (Please specify the dates that you mean when you say “festival seasons”) 5. How much money is saved by using the banana stalk as fertilizer? normally the farmers are not willing to make any fertiliser, they are just using the stem as such as a fertilizer 6. How much compost is typically created in a season? it depends on the amount of waste , normally the farmers are making vermi compost (right, we saw this on our visit. if the farm does not create their own fertilizer (compost), they must buy fertilizer, correct? can you talk to a farm to determine how much money they save converting plant waste to fertilizer, as opposed to buying fertilizer?) 7. What is your current method of disposing of waste banana stalk? it can be used as a cattle feed or it is used as a fertilizer as such 8. How labor intensive is that method? compost making is some what difficult task, so farmers are not wiling to do 9. What alternative methods have you tried in the past? in fact the small scale farmers having about 100 banana trees , is not concerned about making any products from the waste materials [how many hectares is a small scale farm? how many small scale farms exist in kerala? geographically, where are these farms located (create a map showing all the farm locations, size of farm, # of employees per farm, etc)]

10. What alternative methods are you aware of? we know that some fiber extracting processes are going on . But these processes are not existing in our locality 11. Why haven’t you tried the other methods? lack of technology 12. How much would you be willing to pay for a banana fiber extraction tool that required no special skills to use? Rs.5000 (for a person having a land area of 5 hectares.) 13. How do you learn about advances in farming techniques, new machinery, from the awareness programmes 14. If one suitable machine is implemented at affordable cost ,will you buy it? we think the machine can be affordable to farming groups, more than a single farmer 15.Are you able to work with a group of people so that you can produce high quality fibers? sure, we can PEOPLE KNOWLEDGEABLE ABOUT BANANA FIBER 1. What do you currently produce with banana fibers? bags, textile products 2. How would you describe the market for banana fiber products? there is a possibility of making bags which can replace plastic bags 3. Are there limiting factors to the growth of the market? If so, what are they? mainly the absence of awareness among the people., doubts about the qualities of the product, and the cost

Failed Prototype Problems

Essentially the bushings did not perform well enough to rotate the drum efficiently. We scrapped this idea after working ten hours on it on Saturday.

Prototype Note

Jasen does not have electricity, so there is no CAD available. He also has not given me the receipts for the materials. This is a rough estimate.

Cost 18” of 2” ABS Pipe = ~ $10 2” – 1 ½ “ Reducing Bushing = ~ $1 2” No Hub Coupler = ~ $3 2” Toilet Flange = ~ $ 13 Reciprocating Saw Blade = ~ $10 Aluminum extrusion = ~ 5 Plexiglass = ~? * In our final product, we would use wood instead of plexiglass.