1. The new AFRiPUMP in South Angola
The first field trials with the Afripump were conducted in Lubango, South Angola, with
the support of the Director of the Provincial Water Department, Mr. Abel Costa and his team and Fermacom, the representative in
Angola for the Volanta handpump.
2. The actual situation is alarming.
This pictures shows the typical situation:
Most
handpumps are abandoned after they break
down
due to missing
spare parts.
3. The small blue box of the Afripump is
very suitable to replace an abandoned
handpump.
A small square concrete stand is made on
top of the old platefor to fit the four new anchorbolts of the Afripump.
4. Supervisor with an Afripump, a regular
income
motivates to manage the water
supply and
to maintain the handpump.
5. The original JV Volanta Pump
There are about 800 Volanta handpumps
in Angola since 1992, most of them are functioning,
even 15 years after installation.
The Volanta has a flywheel and a "T-piece"
on top of the
borehole and is widely known
as the most reliable handpump available.
The Afripump is in fact a simplified Volanta,
but with
a
handle, so even less to go wrong.
6. Typical abandoned standard handpump. Communities are getting tired to go on like
this for ever and become reluctant to raise
money for a new pump with the same
problems.
7. With the same pumping system as Volanta,
the Afripump can pump water from deep boreholes with water levels up to 100 m. deep. In such cases the PVC pipes are not hanging
free, but are resting on the bottom
of the borehole.
This "bottom support ystem"
avoids the breaking of the pipes which are
under a
great stress due to the weight of
the
pipes filled with water.
8. Easy installation of the rising main PVC pipes with the safety rope. Note the small cement
base that fits the Afripump on the
old platform.
10. After installation of the PVC pipes, the RVS cylinder is lowered inside the PVC pipes until it fits in a conical seat. Next the handle is attached to the rods and to the blue box and the Afripump is ready for 25+ years
of reliable pumping. One man can do the complete installation if needed.
9. Position of the handle and bearings.
The heavy duty bearings are very strong
and maintenace free and do not need to
be greased.
10. Children like the Afripump; they often
fetch water and with the Afripump its light,
easy
and fast: a bucket of 20 litres is filled
within one minute.
The handle can be adjusted to have the best
balance and can be fit with a counterweight
for pumping up to 100 m deep.
11. In case of a steady market of at least
300 pumps per year, it becomes economic
to start partial local production of some of
the main Afripumpparts like the stand and
the handle. Jansen Venneboer B.V. can help
to set up this local production.
12. Afripump on the 100 m test borehole
next to the
Jansen Venneboer factory in
the Netherlands,
cilinder
depth at 80 m,
note the long extended
handle with counter weight inside for
easy and light pumping,
even
at 80 m deep.
13. Only these simple tools are needed
to install & maintain
the Afripump ....
Note that no complex tools are needed like for most other handpumps; the Afripump is therefor for 100 % a true VLOM handpump.
The hexagonal tools is
only used to lock
the cap to avoid
that unauthorized persons
will open the
pump.
The Afripump, why urgently needed?
Most of the donor "standard" handpumps are abandoned within 3 to 5 years. Pumping rods and pipes rust and break, bearings wear out and the cylinder often has severe problems with the wearing out of the rubber seals of the piston and leaking footvalves.
To make matters worse, for such cylinder repairs, all pipes must be taken out of the borehole and special tools and trained mechanics are needed.
The functioning and sustainability of a handpump is therefore highly dependent on the availability of spare parts and skilled expertise, but both are often locally not available. Therefore, most handpumps are regular out of order and it may take weeks or months before repairs, or repairs are never carried out and the pump is simply abandoned: all investment is lost and people go back to their traditional and unsafe water sources, that are often also far away.
Water projects have good intentions and often train and help communities in the beginning to take care of the Operation & Maintenance (O&M) and also donate spare parts for a while. Therefore in the beginning most problems can be solved.
However, donor organizations are moving out with time and users become responsibility for repairs, often precisley in the time period that the handpumps start to have more problems and need complicated repairs and spare parts.
In recent years, many governments standardized the types of handpumps to be used in the country and many attempted were made to set up a distribution system for handpump spare parts, also through the private sector. However, it became clear that the private sector was not interested in selling handpump spare parts, simply because it is not a profitable activity on itself; small shops prefer to sell items that move fast and give a direct return on investment. A sustainable functioning spare part supply for handpump became therefore an illusion and the problems remained. NGOs are now often supplying spares and expertise, but that is clearly not a sustainable situation.
The actual situation is therefore alarming: most handpumps are still abandoned within 3 to 5 years and so far there is still no adequate solution to make community handpumps sustainable. Governments and donors in developing countries have no other option than to continue to invest millions of dollars every year to replace abandoned handpumps, year after year. Therefore little funding is left to increase the coverage of rural water supply, as is required to fulfil the millennium targets by 2015.
In fact, if it wasn’t for contineous donor support and ongoing and expensive rehabilitation projects, in most African countries the actual coverage of rural water supply is only going down with time. It is estimated that when donor funding would stop now, by the year 2015 there will be hardly any handpump working in rural Africa.
This is clearly an unacceptable situation that needs a firm solution.
In other words, there is a high need for a reliable and simple handpump that is not dependent on spare parts. The Afripump technology offers therefore a welcome and final solution for this persistant spare part problem.
Introducing the Afripump
The Afripump has been recently developed by Jansen Venneboer B.V. who also is the manufacturer of the reliable Dutch Volanta handpump
The JVI Volanta handpump is world wide considered as the world most reliable handpump, however, the Volanta still needs some spares every 5 to 10 years (due to the flywheel and the stainless steel T-piece pressure box), also the Volanta pump was more expensive than other handpumps on the market.
Therefore, many projects requested Jansen Venneboer B.V. if it would be possible to develop a new handpump with a handle that would be even more reliable, but also cheaper as compared with the original Volanta.
This resulted in the the new Volanta - Afripump (or in short, the "Afripump"). The major change is a handle in stead of a flywheel and a simple PVC T-piece inside the blue box, all components in the borehole are basically the same. These changes greatly reduced the cost of the pump and eliminated the need for spares.
If a community would like to change an Afripump for a Volanta flywheel pump, it can simply change the blue box for a flywheel arrangement, all the inner components are exchangeable. Also any existing Volanta can easily be converted to an Afripump, for instance when there is no regional support team to change some parts of the Volanta every 5 to 10 years.
The Afripump is therefore the ultimate low-cost and sustainable alternative to the many traditional "standard" handpumps that break down after some years.
With the Afripump, NGOs and projects can now finally also buy cheap handpump that will enable the rural communities to have a long term and sustainable solution for their water supply.
The key success of the Afripump is its simple and strong construction and the fact that it needs no spare parts due to a new pumping concept.
How is it possible: a handpump without spares?
The worse that can happen to a community is that they arrive at their pump and suddenly the pump stops working completely due to a broken part.
With other handpumps this often happens due to broken rods and broken pipes, leaking pipes, faulty piston rubbers seals, leaking footvalves or wrongly installed footvalves, etc. etc.
With the Afripump all this will not happen: i.e. the pump will not stop working due to wearing out or broken spare parts, simply because:
-
The stainless steel rods have rolled threaded connections which don't brake,
- The heavy duty strong bearings are maintence free, lifetime 25+ years,
- The rising main is made from quality BOODE PVC pipes and don't break,
- For deep water levels the Afripump has a bottom support system,
- The piston has no rubber seal and is 100 % maintenance free.
Based on the experience with the Volanta handpump, the maintenance of the Afripump is limited to cleaning of the pump and platform, checking and occasionally tightening of some nuts & bolts, maybe applying paint from time to time, all other parts are maintenance free.
The Afripump is also 100 % VLOM (Village Level Operated & Maintained) because the few simple activities can be done by a local caretaker with local available materials and require no special tools, equipment or training.
What about statistics on the Volanta - Afripump?
The Afripump is basically the same as a Volanta, that means that for all the crucial parts (rising main, rods, sealless piston, bearings, etc.) the same impressive statistical values of more than 20 years are valid. Based on these data and the fact that the Afripump has less moving parts than the Volanta, it is expected that the Afripump has a functional lifetime of 25+ years.
With the basic needs as water finally secured, rural communities can now start to concentrate on other aspects to improve their lives and don't have to worry every 3 - 5 years about a new handpump.
The pumping system
The Afripump has the same pumping system as a Volanta handpump and therefore also highly reliable and maintenance free. It is composed of a high quality stainless steel cylinder and a piston without rubber seals. The cylinder is lowered with the rods into the PVC pipes (rising main) until it locks in a conical shaped socket in the pipes below the water level. On any moment, the cylinder can be taken out of the rising main again by pulling up the rods, for inspection or cleaning, while all the PVC pipes remain in place.
The piston is long and is made from special high resistant material with a stainless steel ball valve system inside. Special feature of the piston is that is has no rubber seals; the pumping pressure is created by slip water that moves with various speeds between the piston and the cylinder. This creates a hydraulic lock and lubricates the movement; pumping is therefore efficient and light and the piston is 100 % maintenance free. The piston sandtrap avoids that sand will come between the piston and the cylinder.
Operation & Maintenance (O&M)
Studies show that a community handpump is best managed by one person only, who supervises the fetching of water and who organizes the maintenance and cleaning of the water point. The supervisor is usually appointed by the community with an agreement or licence with the local authorities to supervise the public water point for a small fee per month or per bucket of water, paid by the users of the handpump.
This extra income keeps the supervisor motivated for the job.
However, when a handpump has many breakdowns and no spare parts, the sustainability of this service is problematic. Supervisors are often desperate looking for assistance to repair their pump in order not to loose their additional income, while users are not happy with the unreliable service and become reluctant to pay. Studies show that once a handpump is abandoned, it is difficult to re-establish the trust & motivation of the community to pay for the service and to start all over again with a new handpump.
Field tests in Kenya and South Angola (see pictures) show that users are happy with the new and reliable Afripump, also because the pumping is lighter and gives more water compared with other handpumps, this avoids long waiting lines in the morning and evening rush hours.
With the Afripump sustainable community water supply becomes possible for a minimal contribution of the users. Regular rehabilitation of the handpump is not necessary anymore, no time or more money is wasted.
Also for deep water levels
Most standard handpumps fail to pump water from groundwater levels deeper than 40 m, or deliver only very small quantities of water and break down due to the extra weight of the water in the PVC pipes.
The new Afripump has no problems with deep water levels due to the special piston and quality materials. In case of rehabilitation below 50 m it is advised that the PVC pipes continue to the bottom of the well to support the weight of the rising mains (bottom support).
Optional for the deep water levels is an extendable handle with a massif counter weight to compensate for the extra weight of the water and rods in the rising main. Therefore pumping remains easy, also for children, even at 80 m deep.
Micro Credits & public-private water service
Because of its reliability and low cost operation, the new Afripump is especially suitable to be used for a commercial viable and sustainable water service.
In case no other funding is available, a community or a supervisor can ask for a small credit to replace an abandoned handpump by an Afripump and repay the loan with the selling of the water, which is explained by the following example:
Studies show that families in rural communities will agree to pay 1 to 3 US$ per month for a reliable water supply, especially when there are no alternative nearby water souces availabale. One handpump can serve 25 to 50 families that need 125 to 250 buckets of 20 litres/day, which equals 3 to 6 hours of pumping. This is enough to pay 25 to 50 US$ per month for the supervisor, the remaining revenues are sufficient to pay back the loan fully in 3 to 5 years.
Governments welcome these public - private arrangements, as it relieves their responsibilities. Moreover, a sustainable water supply in the community will increase overall well being and stimulate a stable economy.
Simple installation
Installation of the Afripump is easy can be done by one technical person and one assistant. The Afripump comes standard with strong 70/80 m PVC rising mains and 9 mm stainless steel rods with threaded connections (Volanta technology). For the installations no special tools or tripod is required, only keys nr 24 and 17 are needed to complete the installation. When the concrete base and drainage platform is ready, the metal stand is fixed on 4 anchor bolts and the pipes are glued and lowered into the borehole casing up to the desired depth. The handle is fitted to the base with 4 M16 bolts. The cilinder is lowered with the rods and the last rod is attached to the handle. The cover is put on and the pump is ready to use.
Afripump installation options
There are basically two situations to use the Afripump:
1. to replace an abandoned handpump (rehabilitation)
2. to make a new water point in a new borehole
Option 1. Rehabilitation of an abandoned handpump
To replace an old abandoned handpump with an Afripump is easy. In case of an old Afridev or India pump, it is sufficient to remove the pipes and the top part only; the Afripump will directly fit on the four small bolts of the old pedestrial that can stay in the concrete. Later, a concrete base can be made around the old pedestrial for more stability. If needed, only one man can do the job in just a few hours.
For other handpumps, a small elevated cement base is made for the 4 new anchor bolts to fix the Afripump, after removing the old pump. This elevated new base also avoids that spill water enters into the borehole. The small new base is made on top of the old base, see fig. 8.
After drying out of the cement, the blue box is fixed on the new anchor bolts and the PVC rising main (with glued sockets in this case) is lowered into the borehole casing with the security rope, no special tools or tripod is needed.
The rising main PVC pipes hang on a conical flange, see also fig. 8. A small T-piece that will guide the water into the sprout is fixed on the flange with 4 bolts. After the BPS is lowered into the rising main and the handle is attached to the rods, the Afripump is ready to use.
Option 2. Making a new water point
In case of a new borehole, the Afripump offers even more advantages. In fact, the installation becomes simpler, because the rising main of the Afripump can also serve as casing of the borehole. Elimination of the expensive PVC borehole casing substantially lowers the total costs and logistics are simpler.
In this case, the Afripump PVC pipes can also be ordered with a trhreaded connection for fast and easy installation. The rising main is extended with the same 70/80 pipes with a 0,7 mm Boode filter screen. After installation of all the PVC pipes the gravel pack is placed around the filter screen, isolated from the top of the borehole by a (clay) packer. The cement base is completed with the 4 anchor bolts and the rest of the installation is basically the same as in option 1.
For option 2, (new borehole, left picture) the Afripump rising main is extended in the borehole with a with BOODE filter screen below the cilinder. All is installed directly after the drilling, so there is no need for a borehole casing. This pumping from the casing option reduces logistics and the cost of the borehole.
The figure on the right shows a traditional handpump PVC in a borehole with a borehole casing. In that case, there are two PVC pipes in the borehole: one for the casing with a filter screen (generally 4") and one for the handpump.
Local production
Local production of handpumps is always a welcomed option and increases ownership and the sustainability of the supply. Due to the use of standard materials like for instance a 3 mm metal plate for the blue box, many parts of the Afripump can be produced within the country (see fig. 10).
Local production does not need a new factory or large investments, but is only cost-effective when a regular supply of handpumps is required (>> 300 pumps per year), the Afripump local representative can work together with an existing local metal workshop for partly local production.
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Technical data Afripump
Water depth (meters) 10 30 50 80
Volume ( litres/min) 22 20 17 12
(m3/hour) 1.3 1.2 1.0 0,7
Rising Main PVC 70/80 mm, glued socket connections
Rods Stainless steel 9 mm with M10 rolled-on threaded connection
Centralizers Self lubricating, high impact Teflon massif centralizers
Main bearings UCP 206 J – 30 mm. standard heavy duty bearings
Cylinder Stainless steel A4, 53 / 57 - 1000 mm
Piston Hydrolock©; no rubber seals
Foot valve Free floating
Handle 24 x 1100, extendible, with counterweight option
Stroke 18 cm maximal
Depth Range 1 – 100 m. with bottom support below 50 m.
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About Jansen Venneboer B.V.
Jansen Venneboer B.V. is part of the Jansen Venneboer Group (JVG) and is one of the leading Dutch Companies in design and production of moving bridges, sluices, jetties and traffic systems. It has a staff of about 70 people and is a pragmatic and versatile organisation.
Jansen Venneboer B.V. has developed and produced the Volanta flywheel handpump since the water decade 1980 - 1990. Over the years, the Volanta flywheel handpump has build up a record of being the most relibale handpump for community water supply; The flywheel enables contineous pumping, therefore one Volanta can supply up to 1.500 persons per day.
Over 10.000 Volanta pumps have been produced since 1980, of which an estimated 85 % is still in operation in many countries in Africa (Burkina Faso, Niger, Cameroon, Angola, etc.) The flywheel of the Volanta is easy to operate, the water comes out under pressure and can fill up a watertower for water for a school or for irrigation.
Maintenance of the Volanta pump however may require a back up support from a regional organization for a limited spare parts supply of some parts of the Flywheel system and T-piece pressure box. Subsurface parts of the Volanta are also maintenance and free and require also no spare parts.
Jansen Venneboer is ISO-9001 and VCA certified.
Part of the production unit of the Volanta and the Afripump with
Jansen Venneboer B.V. in the Netherlands. All pumps are in stock
(see the carton boxes and pipes) and
can be send worldwide by
seafreight or by air on a short time notice.