Hi Milli,

In response to your questions:

The cubicles you can see are for our Tsiky household toilets, which are part of the pilot scale application which we began to implement in 2015 and will expand in the coming year.

We are treating the waste in anaerobic digestion systems that are installed and operated in partnerships between Loowatt SARL and the local government in Antananarivo.

SMTP currently is producing the toilet container at prototype volumes in resin. As we move to larger scale production we hope to produce the toilet container in recycled plastic. Materials for the toilet body are chosen taking into consideration numerous factors including locally available options, environmental footprint, and price.

Our BMGF grant is not currently finished. We are also currently funded by a blog from the GSMA Mobile For Development Programme .

As we are a small team working on multiple projects, we'll do our best to answer questions. We have a FAQ page on our website which answers common questions as well. We appreciate your understanding and patience. Thank you!

Dear Virginia,

I have some questions concerning the Loowatt project.

In the pictures you show a very nice container with two cubicles. Is that a pilot scale application? What is Loowatt's plan in terms of larger scale application?

What are you doing with the collected material?

Is SMTP producing the toilet container out of recycled plastic?

Concerning the grant, is your BMGF grant finished by now? I am asking because if this is the case, you could share the final report here. Which external funding source(s) do you have now?

Thank you for answering.

Best regards,
milli

Hi Virginia

Thanks for your important work you are doing in Madagascar.

The country was in focus in March this year as its president Mr. Hery Rajaonarimampianina became the first Chief of State in the world to sign a pledge in public to end open defecation. We presented a short mention of this in our Africa Water, Sanitation & Hygiene May-June 2015 edition. Kindly visit our website www.afriwater.org and go to ‘People’ pages 31-32.

We wish to feature the ‘progress on end defecation in Africa’ in our Sept – Oct 2015 edition of the publication and since you are on ground, could you kindly contribute a short article on the magnitude of the problem and the intervention in place bearing on the pledge of the president at this moment in time?

Kind regards / Steven

On 1 December 2014, Loowatt installed five Tsiky Toilets in five households in the neighborhood of Manjakaray, Antananarivo. The durable Tsiky Toilets are easy to transport and simple to install. They are suitable for densely populated urban areas like Antananarivo.

Tsiky means ‘smile’ in Malagasy, one of the official languages of Madagascar. Combined with an anaerobic digester, the Tsiky Toilet uses Loowatt’s patented technology to harness value from human waste by producing energy and fertilizer. We have forged collaboration with the local waste utility, SAMVA, to feed the waste into a locally sited digester, which they manage. The households range greatly in size from 5 to 27 people, and the service is designed for customers to pay according to their use. The customers have given great feedback, citing the toilet’s comfort, cleanliness, lack of smell, ease of use and customer service.

Loowatt is working in partnership with a local pit emptiers’ association to orchestrate the waste collection. The waste collection process is designed to eliminate direct contact with waste completely—a huge contrast to getting inside pit latrines to empty them. Upon collection, the waste goes through an anaerobic digester to generate energy and fertilizer. At the treatment site, Loowatt has installed a generator so the energy produced is now used to light the site as well as charge batteries for the local community.

"I’m really pleased to introduce the Loowatt Tsiky experience to Madagascar homes. If you are interested in having a Tsiky Toilet, please contact us." - Anselme Andriamahavita, Director of Operations, Loowatt SARL



6 months later, Loowatt is installing more Tsiky Toilets in Antananarivo households, following the successful pilot operation of 5 Tsiky household toilets which began in December 2014. These new Tsiky Toilets have the same external shape and appearance as the 2014 toilets but with added touches to improve performance and ease of installation. Most importantly, they are made in Madagascar.



On 29 April 2015, Loowatt’s process and implementation engineer Armel Segretain went to the Malagasy Society of Plastics Processing (La Société Malgache de Transformation de Plastiques, or SMTP), which is a Malagasy company that makes everything plastic or recycled plastic, such as tubes, pipes and tanks. SMTP also produces objects in molded fiberglass for boats, digesters and septic tanks. Armel was there to inspect the manufacturing of the new Loowatt Tsiky Toilet mold. The final color choices for the Tsiky Toilets are green, blue and grey. Let us know which one is your favorite at www.loowatt.com/contact

For those following the progress of Loowatt or interested in Madagascar, you might find this blog post on their website interesting (from Feb. 2015):

loowatt.com/news/5-new-loowatt-tsiky-toilets/

Sections from the blog post (go to the blog post to see all hyperlinks):

5 New Loowatt Tsiky Toilets Installed in Madagascar



On 1 December 2014, Loowatt installed five Tsiky Toilets in five households in the neighborhood of Manjakaray, Antananarivo. The durable Tsiky Toilets are easy to transport and simple to install. They are suitable for densely populated urban areas like Antananarivo. You can see a glimpse of the city by watching our documentary: vimeo.com/75398690

Tsiky means ‘smile’ in Malagasy, one of the official languages of Madagascar. Combined with an anaerobic digester, the Tsiky Toilet uses Loowatt’s patented technology to harness value from human waste by producing energy and fertilizer. We have forged collaboration with the local waste utility, SAMVA, to feed the waste into a locally sited digester, which they manage. The households range greatly in size from 5 to 27 people, and the service is designed for customers to pay according to their use. The customers have given great feedback, citing the toilet’s comfort, cleanliness, lack of smell, ease of use and customer service.

Loowatt is working in partnership with a local pit emptiers’ association to orchestrate the waste collection. The waste collection process is designed to eliminate direct contact with waste completely—a huge contrast to getting inside pit latrines to empty them. Upon collection, the waste goes through an anaerobic digester to generate energy and fertilizer. At the treatment site, Loowatt has installed a generator so the energy produced is now used to light the site as well as charge batteries for the local community.



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See also here: loowatt.com/madagascar/

It's an example of a container-based sanitation system, coupled with a centralised biogas digester.

Loowatt also seems to successfully break into the market of supplying festivals in the UK with odourless, waterless toilets.

Has any of our UK-based readers ever seen one of the Loowatt toilets around?

See also:
loowatt.com/uk/

www.loowatt.com/news/reinvent-the-toilet-fair-india/

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE AT LONDON

Loowatt Selected as an Exhibitor for the Reinvent the Toilet Fair: India
Fair to Showcase Advancements that Improve Sanitation and Health


LONDON, UK – LOOWATT LTD. announced today that they will be an exhibitor at the Reinvent the Toilet Fair: India event which will be co-hosted by the Government of India’s Department of Biotechnology and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in March 2014. Loowatt Ltd. will showcase energy-generating waterless toilet technology that aims to help bring sanitation to those who need it most. The fair is also supported by the Indian Ministry of Urban Development.

The Reinvent the Toilet Fair: India aims to stimulate discussion and spur partnerships to improve global sanitation and bring affordable sanitation solutions to people who need it most. The fair is also an opportunity to recognize India’s leadership and commitment to improving child health and fostering innovative solutions to persistent development challenges.



Loowatt Ltd.’s project is one of approximately 50 exhibits that will be on display during the two-day fair. Loowatt’s waterless toilet system harnesses value from human waste by producing energy and fertilizer. The patented toilet packages human waste in a biodegradable lining material, which is then transported to an anaerobic digester for energy generation. The toilet on display at the fair is the new Loowatt Tsiky Toilet, which is stylish, lightweight and highly customizable. With easy transport and simple installation, the durable Tsiky Toilet is suitable for densely populated urban areas. This particular toilet is customized with an electric button flush and a white outer shell.



In addition, Loowatt is introducing the new Loowatt Event System, a mobile system designed primarily for festivals and events. The environmentally friendly system provides off grid toilets and human-waste-derived energy with rapid setup and removal. The Loowatt Event System will be unveiled in summer 2014 in the UK. This project is accomplished with support from the UK’s Technology Strategy Board.

“Of the 1.1 billion people who defecate in the open, almost 60 percent are Indian,” said Professor K. VijayRaghavan, secretary of the Indian Department of Biotechnology. “Sanitation solutions using the latest technology need not be complex or driven by expensive gadgetry, but they need to be innovative and address the many aspects of this multifaceted problem.”

“Today, because of a lack of toilets and poorly functioning infrastructure, massive amounts of untreated waste winds up in the environment, spreading disease,” said Brian Arbogast, director of the Water, Sanitation & Hygiene team at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. “We are privileged to host the Reinvent the Toilet Fair: India with our partners to advance conversations about sanitation – it is a testament to the Indian government’s commitment to improving how we deal with this pressing problem.”

Note: attendance at the fair is by invitation only. No further invitations will be extended.

Media Contact:
Kaitlin Zhang
Communications Manager
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
+44 (0)20 8671 2366

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I had the privilege of speaking at the TEDxSouthwark conference in London on the issue of human wastes and Loowatt's innovative technology. Check it out here:


TED is a non-profit organisation devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out in 1984 as a conference bringing together professionals from Technology, Entertainment and Design.

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I have compiled here a list of TEDTalks regarding sanitation services. Hope you enjoy it!

Mr. Toilet Jack Sim’s TEDxTaipei talk


Rose George: Let's talk crap. Seriously.


Arunachalam Muruganantham: How I started a sanitary napkin revolution!


Ludwick Marishane: A bath without water



Do you have a favourite video? Did I miss an awesome video? Let me know.

Loowatt's Autumn 2013 newsletter is out!
Read it here .

Also, Loowatt is delighted to be shortlisted as one of the Top 100 Small Businesses in the UK. We are in the Biggest Social Impact category. We need your vote to win the award! The deadline for voting is November 1st, 2013.

Click here to vote now!

Thank you for your continuous support!

Loowatt: Waterless Toilet Systems That Generate Energy!

Part 2/2 (***NEW***)


Loowatt commissioned a 2-part documentary to record our work in Antananarivo, capital of Madagascar. This link is Part 2/2. The documentary shows the development of our pilot system, and the impact it will make in the lives of residents and businesses in this African capital. Our film crew, who are Malagasy (born in Madagascar) themselves, spent two months interviewing residents of FAAMI, a neighbourhood deprived of sanitation where our first pilot is being built.

For more on information, please visit our website: www.loowatt.com

Missed Part 1/2? Watch it here:

Hi Virginia,

thanks a lot for sharing all these links. Happily, I already found the answers from the links as follows:

How the Lowatt toilet functions:

The Loowatt toilet is completely waterless by utilizing a unique patent-protected mechanical sealing unit to contain human waste within biodegradable film. The waste is then stored in a cartridge beneath the toilet, for periodic emptying, which can be weekly or daily, depending upon the levels of usage and capacity.

As an answer to my first question, it is really great that the Loowatt toilet has a unique odor-inhibiting system. As it is written, the efficient and odorless toilet provides visitors a pleasant experience compared with exiting products.

However, I could not find an answer for my second question "with the gas production, how much of their current cooking fuel (wood?) can be replaced?" It would be great if you can enlighten me.

Wish you success in your project.

Regards,

Gökce

London-based Loowatt Ltd. has been awarded a $1 million grant from the Bill & Melinda
Gates Foundation to expand its pioneering waterless toilet systems in Madagascar and Sub-Saharan
Africa.

We are immensely grateful for the Foundation’s support and confidence in us. This grant creates a
springboard for global impact, preparing Loowatt to deliver clean and profitable sanitation to millions
of customers in Madagascar, and elsewhere in Sub-Saharan Africa, and eventually the rest of the
world.

For more information, please see our blog entry www.loowatt.com/news/1-million-grant-fro...da-gates-foundation/

Attached is a pdf press release.

Dear Gökce,

Thanks for getting in touch with your questions.

You will find general information about our system on our website at www.loowatt.com.

Further details about the Tana facility, including its configuration and gas uses are at www.susana.org/docs_ccbk/susana_download/2-1624-purves.pdf, and additional information will be forthcoming as we process data from ongoing toilet and energy product use. To date, we have not encountered any physical problems (odor or scenery).

We would appreciate if you visit our web site, where there is a facility for specific questions including FAQs: www.loowatt.com/contact

Thanks again for your interest in our work.

All the best,

The Loowatt Team