Adrian Frausto Segovia
Universidad de Monterrey
Blanca Camargo
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CUMNDA has created a technology which contributes to the preservation of water where it is most wasted in everyday life: the shower. What this company has done is increase the speed and the spread of the water that falls and also preserve some of it in a way that you get the same shower experience without wasting much water. This product also contributes to the family economy and promotes a culture of caring for the preservation of water.
The design of the shower head spreads a good amount of water with enough density and power for a comfortable shower so you don't feel that your actually using less water than with a regular shower head, even if you don't reduce the amount of time in the shower you would still save water.
This innovation started with the idea to create the same effect that happens when you are watering the plants and you put your finger on the hose so the water comes faster. This effect is achieved by different cameras on the shower head. Normally a shower head only uses gravity to spread the water and to make it comfortable it has big holes so more water comes out of it. CUMNDA shower heads have four cameras which has a big entrance and a smaller exit which increase the pressure of water each time it passes each one.
The objective of the innovation is to create a more efficient shower that does not waste water but doesn't sacrifice the comfort of the regular shower head in the market.
Ruben Arturo Muñoz wanted to contribute to a cause that need it a lot of attention, and he found that the waste of water was a pretty serious matter in México.
"Some years ago in 2009, in the valley of Mexico City, there was a social crisis because there was only water to satisfy people's needs for two months. There were 20 million people living in the city, it was a chaos and there was no way to control it, then the government and the organization in charge of water management (Conagua) took immediate action. They asked people to change their shower heads for a more eco-friendly one, but there wasn't a company that could sustain the demand of 20 million people... Thank God it finally started to rain and the problem was solved and they forgot about it, except the states in the North which suffer this shortage all the time".
Because of this matter, he started to investigate the cause of so much waste in water and he found that where people wasted most water was when taking a shower. The reason for this is that people wanted to have a nice shower but the commercial companies solution was to create more holes in the shower heads without any care of how much water they waste.
After having this information he focused on making a product that would create a comfortable shower that could compete with normal shower heads but that didn't waste more water than necessary.
"We started by a very simple idea, when you are watering the plant and you put pressure on the exit of the hose the water comes out faster because its being compressed; this idea was the one that helped me design my product. After some more research, I found the effect was called ¨Venturi¨, that is having a bigger area of entrance than the exit and the result was that the water came out at bigger speed"
This idea of the water hose was the one that inspired the innovation.
The impact of this innovation on the business was that they were able to create a new product which could change the entire market, start a competition for the well being of the consumers. CUMNDA's shower heads not only waste less water but also helps the families economy without sacrificing comfort. They are also cheaper than other shower heads.
There has not been a long term impact on society and environment yet, because its a project that is considerably new and still not well known but Mr. Muñoz has expressed what impact he wants to make: to prolong human life, to understand that by preserving water we are saving ourselves, and to prevent social crisis because of the lack of water. After we learn why this is important, create a culture that shares the thought of taking care of water.
The impact on the environment that he wants to achieve is to prevent water crises (like the one on the valley of Mexico) from happening ever again.
The innovation makes the company to have an advantage against other products thanks to three benefits that other businesses lack: waste significantly less water, provide a quality bath, and help the family economy.
The business is young but it has all the potential to become very successful on the market and create great profits.
This type of product which helps the environment while providing the same comfort that other shower heads do, are revolutionary like solar panels. This an everyday product that would not only reduce the damage but it would also increase people's finances which could improve the economy and help the Mexican family.
"And of course if this product reaches all Mexico, we could do an incredible reduction of water use in the whole country and this new product could be even reach other countries helping them too."
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