As my last
two weeks in Kenya came to a close, I not only worked to finish my assignment
but also learned about how the production process at Bright Green. As part of
my assignment, I needed to understand the many efforts that go into making the
charcoal briquettes. This first began with site visits to charcoal vendors
where Bright Green gets waste material to make their product. The charcoal
vendors were located in different parts of town, so Rebecca and I used our
favorite mode of transport, the matatus, to go meet them.
When we got
to the site, we were met with towers of giant sacks or guneas stacked on top of each other all filled to the brim with
charcoal. Scattered all over the ground beneath these sacs lay charcoal dust,
the waste material which constitutes the main ingredient of Bright Green’s MOTO
briquettes. We talked with the charcoal vendors who were leaning against the
sacks, asking them about their delivery process and following up on past orders
of charcoal dust that had been requested.
From
visiting the vendors I learned how crucial relationships were in securing the
waste material used in Bright Green’s production chain. Rebecca explained to me
how the government crackdown on deforestation meant that charcoal vendors often
faced challenges dealing with law enforcement and thus many are often hesitant
to collaborate with outsiders even when offered compensation like Bright Green
does. I also learned about the challenges Bright Green faces in ensuring
quality control on the sacks of charcoal dust it receives. In a few cases,
staff members remembered receiving what they thought were sacks of charcoal but
what actually turned out to be a mixture of charcoal, dirt and other objects.
This has led Bright Green to form closer links and frequent engagements with
its vendors to ensure that it receives a certain quality of charcoal dust from
them.
The next
step in production involved me spending a day with Stanley and Rogers who
manufacture the briquettes at the factory. The two gave me a tour of the
factory and demonstrated how they used the raw material waste to produce the briquettes.
Over the course of the visit I was exposed to the different methods and
techniques used to add value to the charcoal waste through making briquettes.
Although seemingly straightforward, I later learned that these techniques were
the product of months of trial and error by the design and engineering staff at
Bright Green. Through an iterative process of creating briquette samples and
then testing them amongst themselves and consumers for effectiveness, the team
was able to develop the top quality product Rogers and Stanley were now
manufacturing.
A few days
after my learning about briquette production, it was time to collect the survey
questionnaires and analyze the results. I spent a whole day with Chebet and
Rebecca running across town to collect the surveys from each of our
participants. We also conducted video interviews with a few people who were
willing to share what their experience was like with the briquettes. After
collecting the questionnaires I began analyzing the data and compiling it into
report for the staff at Bright Green. The data showed the varied experiences
participants had with the product and their opinions on everything from the
aesthetic design of the briquettes to how long the briquettes lasted them while
cooking.
On my last
day, I presented the results of the questionnaire to the team. From the
participants’ responses I was able to provide the team with recommendations on
what areas to improve on the briquettes to better serve their target users. My
analysis also brought up new questions about the conditions under which
participants used the briquettes and how this potentially affected their
experience. As a result, we began to strategize new areas to conduct further
study to address these new questions. Moving forward, the team plans utilize my
work as a stepping stone to conduct future research on the briquettes and their
target users.
What a
rewarding opportunity it’s been for me to help contribute to the research and
development at Bright Green! I feel privileged to have spent my time in Kenya
helping Bright Green advance in reaching its mission to provide eco-friendly
products that meet needs while preserving the environment.
Comments
Post a Comment