The Faecal Sludge Field Laboratory will host a demonstration session at the IFRC Digital Data Week . 

DATE: 20.04.2021; 3 pm to 4 pm ->  please check the agenda

We will present the evolution of the FSFL’s laboratory data management from working with spread sheets to the adaption of an open-source LIMS in the  FSFL IMS project .
Please register to attend the presentation!

Dear Paresh, 
The FSFL was used in trainings in Kampala, Uganda (with Uganda Red Cross Society), and in Spiez, Switzerland (with Swiss Humanitarian Aid). Both labs are in storage and will be used again. The first „live“ deployment was in Cox’s Bazar. We (as part of IFRC) set up the lab in 2019 and to my knowledge the lab is still in use. The prototype used in the field test in Malawi 2017 was at least used until 2019. Feedback for those deployments and trainings led to the overhaul of the equipment list. 

The equipment list was changed extensively and thus the following points are only a quick overview:   

• Consumables from 100 – 150 → shipping to Cox’s Bazar was time consuming; thus an increased amount of consumables allows longer operation of the lab   
• Change from a manual centrifuge to an electrical → manual centrifugation was just to time consuming.    
• Addition of new parameters (e.g.: Biochemical oxygen demand, Total dissolved solids) due to feedback of practitioners   
• Changes in analytical methods → e.g. for bacteriological analysis we went from membrane filtration to direct plating

Future plans:   

• The Austrian Red Cross has started a project to adapt a laboratory information management software   
• The Austrian Red Cross is looking for funding, projects and opportunities to set-up training centers together with partners continuously develop and adapt the FSFL 

Kind regards
Johannes

Dear Johannes,
Could you please highlight the changes in the updated list and reasons for the same. 

Earlier, you wrote:

While the Faecal Sludge Field Laboratory has been developed for use in humanitarian aid operation, the Field Laboratory can also be used in normal/peace/non-emergency times. 

Curious to know where all the lab has been deployed, who were the users, and feedback (if any) from its deployment. Also what are the future plans?

Regards
paresh
 

We have updated the Equipment List of the Faecal Sludge Field Laboratory .  
The Equipment list can be downloaded from the site's cloud .

There is more information about the faecal sludge field laboratory available now:

See presentation by Christopher Friedrich given at the SuSanA meeting, the session on New developments and research findings for urban sanitation and FSM .

His presentation starts in the video at 55:33:
Jump to video at 55:33 

His slides are in the slide deck attached (starts at slide 46).
 

He's also pointed out a new publication:
Link: www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/10/9/1153

++++++++++

Development of a Field Laboratory for Monitoring of Fecal-Sludge Treatment Plants
by  Johannes Bousek  ^1,*, Marco Skodak  ¹, Magdalena Bäuerl  ², Georg Ecker  ², Jan Spit  ³, Adam Hayes  ⁴ and  Werner Fuchs  <sup>1

1</sup>
Institute of Environmental Biotechnology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Konrad Lorenz Straße 20, Tulln, 3430 Vienna, Austria
²
Austrian Red Cross, Wiedner Hauptstraße 32, 1040 Vienna, Austria
³
Wastes COOP, Lange Houtstraat 26, 2511 CW The Hague, The Netherlands
⁴
Butyl Products Ltd., Lingfield House, 11 Radford Crescent Billericay, Essex CM12 0DW, UK
^*
Water 2018, 10(9), 1153;  doi.org/10.3390/w10091153
Received: 1 July 2018 / Revised: 20 August 2018 / Accepted: 21 August 2018 / Published: 28 August 2018
(This article belongs to the Special Issue  Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene in Humanitarian Contexts )

Abstract
In urban humanitarian-aid operations, safe treatment of fecal sludge is highly important. While currently field-deployable fecal-sludge treatment plants are being developed, field-ready analytical equipment for process-control and public health monitoring is missing. Within the Microbial Sludge Quality project, a field laboratory was developed. A minimum set of parameters for the considered processes was developed through literature research. The analytical methods were tested on their field applicability and, if necessary, modified. The following methods were modified for field use: bacteriological analysis (sample homogenization and counting), chemical oxygen demand (sample digestion), volatile fatty acid–alkalinity titration (redesigned test setup), total solids (redesigned test setup), and ammonia determination (redesigned test setup). For bacteriological analysis, chemical oxygen demand, and total solids the modifications lead to highly comparable analytical results. The results obtained by the field methodology for volatile fatty acid–alkalinity titration and ammonia determination were sufficient for field-process monitoring; however, they did not correlate as well. To enable rapid startup of the laboratory during humanitarian-aid missions, it was developed to include analytical and support equipment. The usage of the developed laboratory should allow close-in-time process monitoring and public-health assessments of fecal-sludge treatment plants.

Dear Johannes,

A very good initiative. I am PhD scholar working on database creation of physical, chemical and biological characteristics of Faecal Sludge produced in India. I am very happy to see Faecal Sludge Field Laboratory is being constructed. Kindly let me know, if I can be any help to this great initiative. 

Regards
Chandana

Hi Kris,

The last year Austrian Red Cross and Eawag have been working to include the lessons learned from the deployment in Cox's Bazar and the various trainings into the Faecal Sludge Field Laboratory version 2020. 
We have also prepared and submitted several project proposals for the ongoing development, refining and deployment of the Faecal Sludge Field Laboratory. Let's see if and hope that one gets funded. 

Kind regards
Johannes

Dear Paresh, 

The homepage for the Faecal Sludge Field Laboratory is still under construction, but will (hopefully) be launched by the end of June. The homepage will be the focal point for the (Austrian Red Cross) dissemination activities for the field laboratory. 

In the Humanitarian Innovation Fund funded MSQ Project (you found the homepage) the prototype of the Faecal Sludge Field Laboratory was developed. Currently, Austrian Red Cross and Eawag are updating the analytical methods and the equipment list to the 2020 version of the Field Laboratory. 

While the Faecal Sludge Field Laboratory has been developed for use in humanitarian aid operation, the Field Laboratory can also be used in normal/peace/non-emergency times. It can offer analytical capabilities for a lot of different treatment plants at site and close in time. 
For me the operation of a laboratory for continuous process control and quality management is a basic requirement for the operation of a feacal sludge/wastewater treatment plant.

Kind regards
Johannes

PS.: I will post a note as soon as the homepage goes live. 

Dear Johannes,
Could you please share details about FSFL, MSQ and FAST or share relevant links. 
The link of FSFL you shared is under construction and A quick google search of MSQ lead me to this webpage . 

Also considering that testing is a continuous requirement, could these labs be useful in normal (non-humanitarian aid) times? 

Regards
paresh

Hi Johannes 🙂

Nice to see a MSQ lab topic here. What are the latest updates about it?

I have been a bit out of the loop lately 😷

If you need help with the website let me know.

This thread can be used as a place for discussions about the Faecal Sludge Field Laboratory  (FSFL).

The FFSL has been developed during two Humanitarian Innovation Fund projects (MSQ, FAST) and offers the capability to perform process control and analyse public health parameters directly at faecal sludge treatment plants during humanitarian aid operations.