HTI Hydration Technology Innovation Filters - Essay Example

Final project: HTI Hydration technology innovation filters Executive Summary This project is one of the humanitarian projects aimed to save the lives of both human beings and animals. The project has targeted the disadvantaged community who are the refugees in one of the war torn areas in the sub-Saharan Africa. The project is in line with the United Nation–water program which states that every individual around the world has a right to clean and enough water. Therefore, the implementation of this project in South Sudan refugee camp is one way of accomplishing this objective. The project would involve the adoption of hydration technology innovation through the process of of osmosis o filter dirty and contaminated water by recycling to become consumable by people and animals. Three organizations are the ones that are going to sponsor this program; we have the United Nations high commission for refugees (UNHCR), United Nations- water program and the USAID. The project is expected t take six months of implementation, about $250,000 cost, and would benefit over 800,000 refugees in these camps. Content Introduction………………………………………………………….. Project scope management……………………………………………… Scope description……………………………………………………………. Time management plan…………………………………………………… Define activities …………………………………………………………………….. Sequence of activities……………………………………………………………….. Estimation of the project’s resources and duration………………………………….. Development of the schedule…………………………………………………………. Schedule control……………………………………………………………………… Cost management plan………………………………………………………………… Cost and monitoring control…………………….……………………………………… Funding …………………………………………………………………………………. Quality management…………………………………………………………………….. Project Human Resource Management…………………………………………………. Project Human Resource Management…………………………………………………. Roles……………………………………………………………………………………… Communication management plan………………………………………………………… Project risk management……………………………………………………………………. Procurement management plan…………………………………………………………… Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………….. Introduction Water is known to be an important resource that supports life; the ecological life depends majorly on the presence of water. An environment that has little water resource has fewer chances of survival for the habits than the environment that has plenty of this resource. Both plants and animals need water to thrive well; not only do the organisms need just water, but they need clean water. This is why clean water has been a subject of contention in both local and international forums. United Nations came to a realization that the both animal species and human beings need clean and enough water resource to survive. Lack of adequate and clean water in many parts of the world has become a threat to the life of the organisms. Therefore, the United Nations decided to create a UN-water agency in 2003 to supports the members on matters to do with water in trying to create a sustainable ecosystem. Many countries around the world neither have enough nor clean water; water related problems have been on the rise following the recent statistics most especially in the developing countries such as the sub-Saharan Africa, Arabia, and Asian countries. Most nations lie in deserts and semiarid climate where people who live in these places have a big problem of accessing adequate and clean water. Therefore, there is a need to use the technology available to try to alleviate the situations. This paper is a story on how we can use technology to have more safe and clean drinking water. When the project succeeds, then most of the disadvantaged populations that do not have access to the adequate drinking would now be able to get water. Project scope management The project involves hydration technology innovation which use water filters to recycle unclean water to become clean and safe to drink. The project would aim to develop pump filters that would be able to filter dirty and contaminated water to become clean within the shortest time possible. These filters would be portable in that people would be able to carry them whenever they go. If we successfully built up these filters, those millions of the populations that live in semi-arid and even those that reside in slums areas where water has been contaminated will be able to access clean water. United Nations –water program states that every individual around the world has a right to clean and safe drinking water. The UN-Water program seeks to develop tools and skills needed to achieve a better understanding of the basics, processes, management practices and policies that would aid in improving the supply of global quality fresh water. Therefore, this project is supported and funded partly by UN-Water and United nations high commission for refugees (UNHCR) as one of their move to attain a sustainable development in water resource as one of the millennium development goals. This project would be initiated in refugee camps in Southern Sudan is just a young nations that just got its independence recently but has been hit by regular wars caused by political rivalry. South Sudan as a country lies in the semi-arid region bordering the Sahara desert in the Northern Africa. Thus, water is a big problem in this region and the refugee camps are more affected than any other part of the country. This implies that the project targets to improve the quality of life in the refugee camps through providing a safe and clean drinking water to the refugees who have run away from their homes due to the wars. The map location of South Sudan Photos showing South Sudan refugee camps Scope description The projected HTI filters fit individuals or large groups of people use since they have portable and emergency water filters that produce the pure safe drink. They also add the benefit of replenishing electrolytes and calories in safe hydrating drinks. These filters uses forward osmosis technology and has a state of art filters that tend to expand the chances for water reuse by employing the membrane separation technology to clean up dirty and contaminated water to become clean and fresh for both human and animal consumption. The forward osmosis technology helps to remove difficult toxic materials and pollutants from the streams, rivers, dams and even lakes. The filters would come in a multiple sizes and shapes to suit the users in these camps. For individuals or large groups of people like the refugees in these camps, HTI provides outdoor and emergency water filters that produce a pure and safe drinking water in a period of about fifteen minutes only. Thus, this project would be very helpful to these refugees who are exposed to dirty and contaminated water that flow in the streams nearby. In such a humanitarian places, where water is a crisis, no matter if the source is waste water, flood water, contaminated springs or springs, hydration technology innovation is able to use forward osmosis water filter systems to produce pure and clean water fit for human consumption. This is possible even without the use of electricity or even harsh chemicals that may result in high costs. In other words, this may imply that HTI filters quite unique, innovative and cost-effective wastewater treatment solutions to save populations that are disadvantaged such as refugee camp. HTI filter technology has helped in reclaiming and recycling millions of gallons of wastewater to become useful again. Thus, it is an ambitious project that is going to transform the lives of the refugees in the South Sudan camps if it is well implemented. Examples of the filter we are going to launch are shown as below Some of the reasons that make HTI be appropriate in this task are first, forward osmosis does not require any pumping that could need electricity or generators; thus, costs are cut hence, being economical. Secondly, the technology surpasses reduction for bacteria and other microorganisms found in contaminated water. Thirdly, these filters are easy to use thus, can be used easily by even illiterate individuals who need a less technical operation for them t work. Thus, these advantages suit refugee camps where there are high and poor populations that are exposed to the risks of using unclean water. Time management plan For the successful completion of any project, there has to be a time schedule which shows the sequences how the activities of the projects would be carried out. Like other project, this project too has a time schedule. This time management has five sections that ought to be followed in order for this project become a reality. Define activities When defining the activities that would be carried out in this project. The team members identified three tasks that were to be carried out to the completion of this project. The three tasks were planning, initiation, execution, and evaluation. In planning task, the team member in conjunction with the project sponsors sit down to draw the plan of the project by considering the scope the project would cover, the population targeted by the project, the total cost, and the time available o implement this project. Therefore, we planned all the activities in this project and tried to project the budget and time frame in which this project should be completed. After planning, we initiated the project, this is the introduction of the project in the targeted area. The affected people, in this case, the refugees in these camps are engaged and informed what the project is all about. It is important when one wants to initiate a particular project to inform the people affected so that they can be prepared for it. Thus, the initiation task involved introducing the refugees to the project so that they can realize its significance to their life. After all the necessary materials and civic education has been completed, the team members start executing the project. This is now the implementation phase where all the stakeholders are involved in bringing the project into existence. Sequence of activities This is how the project activities should be carried out progressively. It is not possible to carry all the project at the same time. However, one activity leads to another. Therefore, an initial activity should be done effectively and in a timely manner to give way for the other activity. When activities are carried put in a sequential manner, time and cost would be saved. In this project, there are many activities that had to be accomplished before the project is taken to be a success. Some of these activities are identifying water resources in camp areas, buying pumps that would be able to pump this water to various parts of the camps, purchasing different kinds of HTI filters. Grouping the population targeted to ascertain the amount of water that would serve them well, teaching the refugees residence on how HTI filters work and how they can use and maintain them. Estimation of the project’s resources and duration Projects that are implemented successfully are assigned enough financial and time resources. In this stage, were managed to allocate every activity its cost and time required to complete the activity. Estimation of the resources is quite important because it enables the planners to project the total cost that would be incurred to try and balance with the resources available. Thus, we did activity resource estimation to ascertain how much amount of money we should have before we initiated the project. We estimated the money that would be required for engineering activities, the materials required, the labor and the cost of other arrangements. Moreover, we estimated the time required for the commencement of the project to the time of the completion of the project. The project was planned to take a period of six months from the time of initiation to the time of completion. After six months, we expected that every household in the refugee camp would have an HTI filter and would be able to use it without any problem. Development of the schedule At this stage, we managed to come up with a schedule of activities in accordance with how we are going to carry out the activities planned. The table below is the summary of the scheduled activities that had to be carried out. Month Activity Duration May 2014 Planning 4weeks June & July 2014 -Initiation 2 weeks -Orientation of target population 2 weeks -Identifying water resource areas 2weeks -Purchasing materials &organizing 2 weeks August & September2014 Implementation -Digging wells -Fixing pumps - Constructing reservoir tanks -Connecting pipes Distributing filters among the households -teaching the refugees on how to use the filters -3weeks -1 week -2weeks -1 week -1week October 2014 -Evaluating the strength and challenges of the project 1 month Schedule control The team in the field would have to use this schedule to monitor and control all the activities so that they go with the time schedule as expected. In controlling and managing these activities, the team would hold weekly meetings to ensure that the tasks planned have been completed in time. These meetings would also enable the team to correct any anomaly that may be arising to challenge the implementation of the project. In case of any changes, the team leaders would try to include in these changes in the schedule to ensure that they do not affect the entire project implementation. Cost management plan Like time, the cost of the project should also be managed properly to ensure that the resources available would be enough to accomplish it. The main objective of cost management is to estimate the total cost of the project. Some of the elements that would be captured in the cost management include labor, surveys, materials, equipment, permits, and infrastructures. On this cost, materials and infrastructures are the ones that are going to take a big share of the budget. It is because infrastructures such as reservoir tanks and pipes tend to take a lot of money. The table below shows the cost estimate as per activity The table below shows the cost estimate as per activity Activity Direct cost ($)(‘000’) Budget overhead ($) Total cost ($) (‘000) Transport & Communication 7 3 10 Surveying 2 5 7 Permit cost 5 2 7 Educating the community 8 4 12 Construction of water reservoirs 30 5 35 Training cost 4 5 9 Labor 40 10 50 Team accommodation 6 2 8 Building materials 25 15 40 HTI filters 30 10 40 TOTAL $157 $61 $218, 000 Cost and monitoring control Like time control, the costs also have to be controlled to avoid over-expenditure which can lead the stalling of the project. Some of the activities that are involved in monitoring and controlling of the cost are -Management of cost to prevent over-expenditure -Engaging the project team to approve that significantly goes beyond the estimated project cost -Trying to seek the alternative available materials that can cut cost. -Trying to utilize the local labor to use fewer costs In controlling the cost, the costs incurred would be tracked and compared with estimated costs The project team would have the task of managing the purchases and the invoices would be used to confirm the costs. In case there would be any activity that would need more than 10% of the budgeted cost, there would be a need for it to be approved by all the team members before it is released. The team would have the task of reviewing all the cost incurred per months to ensure that things are running as expected. Funding of the project The funding of this project would involve various stakeholders. As mentioned earlier, it would partly be funded by United Nation high commission for refugees (UNHCR), UN-water and USAID. These are the three major sponsors of this project. When the project would be complete, the sponsors would hand over its maintenance to the Sudanese government which would be responsible for maintenance of the established infrastructure. The table below shows the funding share for each sponsor Sponsor Amount UNHCR $120,000 UN-Water $80,000 USAID $50,000 Total $250,000 Quality management The main goal of the quality management plan is to ensure that the project planned yield the results expected and desired results. It involves how the plan would be executed properly with little difficultness. The team members would consist of experts in the different field who would be evaluating every activity done to ensure that the project activities are done as expected. The engineers would oversee the building of water reservoirs and dams to gauge how they are being construction. It obvious that they want to see the quality construction of these water reservoirs so that they may last longer to serve the population. Other water engineers would examine the materials purchased to established water pipes, pumps, and even the quality of the filters. To ensure quality, they would have to certify and approve first before they are put on the activities. All this quality monitoring to make sure that the project attains quality results at the end of it all. Some of the key activities that would need quality planning are surveying, construction of the water reservoirs, the community installation of the pumps, and material purchase. Some of the quality metrics that would be used to ascertain if the activities done in the course of the project were done considering quality are a)Surveying and developing land b)Acquiring material c) Construction quality d)Micro financing -Testing soil content -Geological layout -Water availability -National and international standards -Material type -Material tolerance -Material treatment -The strengths of the concrete used -Foundation level -The building process -Loan rates -Repayment of loans -Qualifying the loans Project Human Resource Management In any project, there must be the sponsors and the implanters. Of course, the sponsors cannot just fund a project that does not have other stakeholders who would on the ground to ensure that the project has been completed. The top level human resources team would be composed of UNHCR Executive sponsor -UN-water Executive sponsor USAID executive sponsor -Project manager -Project assistant manager Project engineers, Finance &Manager, Legal and support manager, Implementation manager Casual/Contractual workers Under the project manager, there would be other contract employees who would be employed to assist in carrying out the project activities. Since this is a technical project, the management would consider employing technical personnel to assist in installing the pumps and even teaching the population on how HTI filters work and how to maintain them to last longer. Casual employees would be deployed as the work progresses in contractual terms. Roles Executive sponsors of UNHCR, USAID &UN-water These are the representatives of their sponsoring organization. Their main duty is to approve the funds to be sponsored and oversee high-level details of the project. They also receive monthly reports about the cost and quality of the activities being implemented in the field. They use these reports to brief the sponsors’ executives on the progress of the project. Project manager The main responsibility of the project manager would be to oversee the project. He would be responsible for the project planning, execution, monitoring and controlling. He would do this as he balances the scope, the quality, the schedule the resources available and the risks involved. He would be the one to initiate communication amongst the stakeholders associated with his project. The project manager would be located in the country where the project is being established that is in South Sudan. Project engineer This is the personnel who will be responsible for the technical aspects of the project since he would be the licensed professional engineer. He would aid in the selection of the contractors, technical personnel, materials and ensuring the quality of the project. The project engineer would be there to verify the designs that that concur with the requirements of the international standards. Finance and procurement manager He would be responsible for purchasing and procuring the materials for the project. He would keep all the financial records as per the activities. Some of the expenditures he would oversee are transport costs, emergency, team food and accommodation, payment for contractors labor cost, and equipment costs. He will report directly to the project manager. Legal and support manager would deal with legal matters affecting the project. He would advise the stakeholders on the matters to do with law. Another responsibility of the legal manager is to assist in negotiations of the contracts, and legal matters related to the projects. The Implementation manager is the manager who would be on the ground to oversee every activity of the project being implemented. They would assist the team in the transition to the microfinance phase in the quest to ensure that the beneficiaries of this project continue to enjoy the services. This personnel would be based in South Sudan and would work directly with casual employees on the ground. Developing a project teams The project human resource members would have to be grouped into small groups with respect to the kind of the activities assign to them. These teams would be required to work towards the attainment of the projects goals. The team leaders would be liaising with the implementation manager to ensure that whatever they are doing is going as per the requirement of the project. Every team member should know the project’s mission and objectivities so that they can work keeping in mind that they have to perform well and work hard for the project to become a success. The team leaders would be responsible for coordinating their teams, leading, influencing and helping their team members in making effective decisions. Moreover, the team leaders would be there to solve conflicts that may arise amongst the team members. Communication management plan For the successful completion of this project, there must be an effective communication system. The communication plan would show how information would be disseminated to various stakeholders of the project. As mentioned earlier, the project managers’ office would be the hub of communication since every stakeholder directly link with this office. The communication plan ensures that all the relevant information would be generated, distributed, and documented in proper manner. Communication plan management would involve communication planning, information distribution, performance reporting and management of the stakeholders. Communication plan would be composed of all kinds of communication both formal and informal to ensure that information is successfully distributed to the required recipients. They would include, phone calls, SMS, text, emails, casual conversation letters, memos and many more. In Information distribution, important documents which include projects records, archives, analysis, lessons, change request and many more would be sent by various means. They would be distributed with media such as emails, reports, control charts, texts, hard copies and many more. Performance reporting is short-form reporting that would be submitted by team leaders t the implementation managers and the implementation managers forwards to the project manager. The progress of the project would be monitored and tracked through the communication reports being submitted by the team members. Management of the stakeholders would be done by the project managers, team leaders and the implementation managers. They would try o communicate with all the stakeholders of the projects so that things go the way planned. They would also have to manage those who are against the projects so that the project does not come to a standstill. Under stakeholder’s management, the responsible individuals would have to communicate regularly with the sponsors and the sponsor executives to discuss various issues that tend to affect the organization. Project risk management In the establishment of the project, the planners have to plan on how to mitigate the risks that may arise and make the project fail. There would be a risks management plan which would be designed to address both positive and negative aspects that may influence the project implementation. Some of the process involved in designing a project risk management plan is the identification of the risk, Analysis of both qualitative and quantitative risks, planning of the response, and monitoring and control. For instance in this project, the risk identified are, there would not be enough human resource to aid in constructing the water reservoirs, the raw materials may be unavailable or are very expensive exceeding the amount budgeted for. The community targeted may not be willing or hostile to the projects team; there may be theft of the equipment after installing them. In establishing this project, it seems so many risks exists, therefore, the planning team should put good plans to eliminate most of the risks. The planning team would design risk response plan which would outline the appropriate risk mitigation for both direct and indirect risks. Moreover, the project team should monitor and control the risks. The process of risk monitoring and control, during the implementation of the project, is quite important. To maintain risks management as a practice, the project team would always hold status meetings to discuss the challenges arising in the course of the implementation. When status meetings are held regularly, the members would be able to identify some of the problems they are encountering as they undertake their tasks. These problems can be the pointers of the upcoming g risks. Therefore, the committee devises some ways earlier to avert these risks that might cause the entire project to fail. In controlling the risks, the project team would have to draw the preventive and the corrective measures when submitting the change requests to other stakeholders. Procurement management plan This is another plan that is very important during the establishment of a certain project in a community. Our procurement management plan would involve the processes involved in the purchase of the equipment and other materials required in the implementation of the project. The finance and procurement manager is the one responsible for this department. In this project, the finance and procurement management would plan the procurement of the construction materials, pipes, transportation of the materials and many other purchases. This manager would conduct the procurement process, administer the procurement process and also close the procurement process. Conclusion HTI filters project in the South Sudan refugee camps would be a big relief to the communities living in these camps. It is one way that would boost the economic status and the standards of life in these camps. As seen from the photos above, the camps are in dire need of water given that the area is a semi-arid. I know when the project is well implemented it is going to change the life of these refugees. The residents would not only access clean water but also enough water for their daily use. When each household would get their filter pumps, they would be able to filter enough water that would be enough. Thus, this is an ambitious project that should be supported by all the stakeholders. Works Cited Htiwater.com. HTI water technology. (2010). Accessed on 26th April 2015. Htiwater. A world leader in water technology. (2010). Accessed 26th April. 2015. Unhcr.org. UN Refugee agency. Accessed on 26th April 2015. Read More