1. Summarize the problem you set out to solve. What was the challenge posed to you? Did it get you excited and why?

In a major disaster, millions need food and water. Thousands of response vehicles are needed in a short period of time to do this - many more than the American Red Cross, a major US disaster responder, owns. They have 340 special-purpose Emergency Response Vehicles (ERVs) distributed across the nation. What’s more, when disaster strikes it usually takes over a week for these ERVs to be driven to the location, but the need for food and water is immediate.

What’s more, most of the year ERVs are parked, unused, in their home locations. This fleet of idle vehicles represents a huge investment (over $90K per vehicle) going to waste.

The biggest challenge is to find an affordable solution that enables the Red Cross to respond to a large scale disaster in a short period of time.

2. What point of view did you bring to the challenge? Was there anything additional that you wanted to achieve with this project or bring to this project that was not part of the original brief?

Instead of designing a new generation of ERV as the original brief asked, I took a breakthrough approach. All of the elements necessary to convert a common rental truck into a makeshift ERV were organized in a self contained kit that can fit on a single Industrial pallet. By following the wordless instructions molded into the ERV Kit volunteer responders can turn any rental truck into a valuable part of the response fleet. The kit can be pre-staged in various locations or air-shipped on demand to radically cut down on the time and cost to respond.

3. When designing this project, whose interests did you consider? (Discuss various stakeholders, audiences, retailing, manufacturing, assembly, distribution, etc., for example.)

Benefit to American Red Cross
-Compared to purchasing and maintaining a large ERV fleet, the conversion kit has a very low initial and maintenance cost
-The kit greatly increases American Red Cross’s food distribution capability during a catastrophe
-It enables American Red Cross to response to a large scale disaster in a short period of time

Benefit to American Red Cross volunteers
-American Red Cross volunteers no longer need to drive the ERV cross-country to reach the disaster area. They can use the kit to covert a local U-Haul truck near the disaster.
-A foldable workstation provides a surface at the proper height, and contains tools the volunteers need to prepare the food
-Two integrated stools allow volunteers to sit while serving the food

4. Describe the rigor that informed your design. (Research, ethnography, subject matter experts, materials exploration, technology, iteration, testing, etc., as applicable.) If this was a strictly research or strategy project, please provide more detail here.

-340 special-purpose Emergency Response Vehicles (ERVs) American Red Cross currently own are far from enough when a catastrophe happens

-One ERV costs over $90,000. It’s going to be a huge investment for American Red Cross to build a large fleet to prepare for catastrophes.

-Most volunteers are 55+ years old female. The product needs to be ergonomically friendly for them to use and operate.

5. What is the social value of your design? (Gladdening, educational, economic, paradigm-shifting, sustainable, labor-mindful, environmental, cultural, etc.) How does it earn its keep in the world?

Millions of disaster victims will get hot food and drinking water right after the disaster

6. If you could have done one thing differently with the project, what would you have changed?

Make volunteers able to work outside the truck to prepare the food when situation is permitted (surrounding area is safe and hygienic).