Saving the best until last

I can really relate to this little conversation in comments below about this Melbourne drinking fountain. So I included it in.

Is it just me, or when you were little did a water fountain never actually ever quench your thirst? too much work for too little pay off? And always a kid behind you pressuring you for their turn…

Oh, absolutely… it was often discussed how much nicer it would be if a soft drink or juice came out of them instead!

And at school, if the water pressure was too low, enterprising students would jam a piece of stick into the tap, thus creating a high-pressure jet. I am sure no Australian child has missed out on experiencing a blast of water to the eye or up the nose when innocently trying to have a drink from one of these “modified” taps.

Thanks for your comments, Megnificent :) it’s funny the design is basically the same as it was when i was a kid. I was one of those kids who broke off sticks in these.

I didn’t go to school here so I woudn’t know this was the design ‘back then’ and ‘now’. I am more used to the kind one sees in the American movies. Anyway, without the tap, this would have passed as a macro shot of my Mac G5. :)

In high summer, Rome is a hot town. Really hot! But unlike London or Manhattan, cool natural spring water trickles from drinking fountains on nearly every Roman street corner.

Some of the fountains in Rome are centuries old, while others, although not so old, perhaps appear the more venerable underneath their layers of modern graffiti. Some are push-button operated, while others flow continuously into ornate bowls and cisterns carved from stone or marble. The correct way to drink from the type shown above is to block the stream by putting your finger over the end of the brass pipe, which forcibly diverts the water into a strong, narrow jet shooting up from a small hole on the top side of the bend in the pipe (which will hit you right in the face if you’re not ready for it). You then simply lower your mouth towards the jet. An efficient and hygienic system, considering that stray dogs also lap around the end of the pipe on hot days.

In summer, drink plenty of water when sightseeing in Rome – It’s free, fresh, cool and clean from the public drinking fountains – And especially make sure your kiddies drink a lot as well, and wear sun hats as protection against sunburn, sunstroke, and rapid body dehydration in the intense heat. Take full advantage of these wonderful drinking fountains.

Gypsies and workmen who are out on the street all day drench their hair under the flow as a precaution against sunstroke, while more genteel be-suited businessmen and women discreetly stoop for a quick cool sip as they pass by.

Using the fountain

From Drinking fountain research

Fountains and photos

This fountain is interesting as it has water coming out from the side, you can see the wet ground where the small drain up the side where the water comes out.I am not sure why it is designed this way at all, as the water just goes down the drain. It is also waste water so it has spit inside it so you would not want to wash your hands or fill up a bottle from it. Its location is out neat the botanical gardens.

Here is another example of a drinking fountains drain which is visible, though the bin next to it makes it appear more dirty as I image the bin would smell.

This next drinking fountain has too much stagnant water around it making it feel and look very dirty. Its one of the older stone designs. It looks like the height of the water means it will land on the ground and there is a drain nearby, though its just formed a big wet puddle at the bottom.

Here is an interesting Photo of how he holds the weight of his bags up on top of the fountain why he drinks. I have cropped this photo so the user can’t be identified for privacy.

Holding books and camera while about to use the fountain.

Some fountains and water from around Melbourne, there isn’t as much left now we are in a drought.

Drinking fountain economics:

Needing more convenient drinking water the city of Melbourne was the first to claim that its people had access to a public drinking fountain on every street. Melbourne has is one of only 5 cities in the world that have such clean drinking water due to the water catchment areas being protected. After people grew sick of using plastic bottles claiming they where to expensive, the bottles are a single use item designed to be throw away after one use, before the bottles chemicals breakdown and are ingested. Needing to drink at least 2 liters of water a day if half came from bottled water this would cost $1456 at a reasonable price of $2 a bottle.

The alterative to bottled water soon hit the streets with a newly design drinking fountain that made it easy to drink from, and fill up bottles. Before drinking fountains where scatted around the city outside the main shopping complexes in Bourke street, or in places that where had to find and you end up walking past them unnoticeably. They only place that seem sufficient where the parks, though with most of them not working it was disheartening.

The 14 different models are sold to councils and cities all across the world with the first instalment given free to councils on the condition they are placed within the same proximities to each other so people can from a central hub of fountains. The colours are changeable to fit in with councils colour themes and there is room within the design for local council’s logos.

After these drinking hubs begin to form in communities less bottled water was being consumed. In poorer communities people would monitor their public infrastructure to ensure it wasn’t damaged, the councils had to money to repair them when they are damaged we can’t go without water so we look after them and fix them ourselves.

How is it that councils receive free drinking fountains, once they are manufactured in China they are shipped to their new cities worldwide, on the condition they are installed in public places that can be utilised by their people. They are placed within easy walking distance to offer more connivance. Replacement parts can easily be ordered and installed.

One Melbournian remember times in her youth of using these drinking fountains, at school there where a number of places to drink from we never bothered lugging around heavy water bottles all day as when we needed a drink we simply walked up to them.

No one has gotten sick from these drinking fountains, they are cleaned and maintained by the council regularly you often see the maintenance workers about doing their jobs. A real ownership has started to occur. Some people in lower social economic environments rely on these fountains to drink form as they can’t afford bottled water taps inside toilets are often not safe to drink from so they have little choice.

The initial success came from more people utilising their public infrastructure this encouraged local councils to buy more of these fountains. The design is easy to find, can be sue by children, adults and those with disabilities and in wheelchairs. In buying them they are also contributing to other councils as with every order purchased free drinking fountains go on to other councils all around the world.  These fountains are really common goods that belong to everyone, when I go travelling overseas I can easily find them as they look similar and they have treated water inside so you don’t get sick. In many countries tap water is unsafe these areas have many people line up to use them. In China where they drink more hot water than cold, there are special heated drinking fountains for filling up bottles.

Business took a few years to develop as we couldn’t just give them all away and it took awhile for councils to add to their collection, we started off in Australia and it soon spread to other countries. Now there is high demand for our products with many people worldwide employed to manufacture, maintain and care for them. It is exciting to walk around a city and see every one using them, and it has helped to reduce the waste created by bottled water, and people are now using their local water again.

Existing Drinking Fountains in Melbourne

Here is the link to the pdf files for the three main drinking fountains in Melbourne, it has a simple tech drawing and list of materials.

So far materials include – Stainless Steel, perforated polished stainless steel, fabricated mild steel which is then powder coated. Stainless steel drinking tap and inside stainless steel flexible hose.

The other design is the same, but uses timber around the outside and fixed in place at the top and bottom. The last is fabricated from 316 stainless steel. So really basic Materiel breakdown and nothing about the manufacturing.

Street Furniture Plan 2005 – 2010

http://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/info.cfm?top=145&pg=3032

“Drinking fountains are also considered high maintenance items. According to maintenance records, two to three fountains a week are being repaired. These repairs are mostly to the spindles that turn on the taps.”

“The City of Melbourne must also resolve its choice of materials for the next generation of street furniture. Powder coated items have not proved to be a durable option. Stainless steel is more expensive than painted steel, but would significantly reduce ongoing maintenance costs and with an asset life of up to 30 years, extend the furniture’s lifespan. The material is also fully recyclable. Stainless steel is also less prone to corrosion which is especially important in areas exposed to salt. Items to be replaced with stainless steel in the Central City include the 80L bin surrounds, 80L recycled bin surrounds, seats with back, bench seats and drinking fountains.”

“A cost comparison has been undertaken between stainless steel and powder coated finishes that takes account of procurement price and on-going maintenance. In stainless steel these items cost 40% more than in powder coated steel. However maintenance costs for stainless steel are less than powder coated steel, with a whole of life cost for stainless steel over a 20 year period being up to 50% less than powder coated steel. These savings apply to seats/benches, bollards and drinking fountains.”

“Street furniture items in non-Central City locations such as Carlton and North Melbourne wear less and therefore require minimal maintenance. Given the reduced wear and tear, items in non-Central City locations should continue to be manufactured from powder coated steel for the foreseeable future. This would also allow powder-coated street furniture removed from the Central City to be refurbished and used as replacement stock in non-Central City areas.”

“An efficient database is a starting point for effective management of assets. The City’s Street Furniture and Sign Database contain information about asset location, type and condition. The condition assessment includes a rating of the state of the asset from 1 (excellent) to 5 (poor).The City of Melbourne’s service provider, on behalf of Council, has the task of updating the street furniture database as they install and/or remove items from the streets. The database currently carries a record of about 90% of all street furniture items although some of the past records are incomplete.”

“Furthermore, no formal renewal program for street furniture exists. Assets are generally renewed when routine maintenance identifies a need for renewal or when urban design aesthetics dictate a change.”

Service standards need to be designed for the following street furniture parameters:
• accessibility;
• safety;
• comfort;
• aesthetics;
• durability; and
• heritage.
Members of the community that use the street furniture items should be surveyed as part of the process of checking expectations and developing service levels.

“An intention of the Disability Discrimination Act is that people with disabilities should be able to enter and use any public building, facility or service in an equal manner.Australian Standards AS1428.2 sets out guidelines delineating disabled access in buildings and public spaces. This includes specific reference to seats, tables, drinking fountains, planter boxes and rubbish bins.”

“Drinking fountains. People with some disabilities may not be able to use them. The height of the drinking fountain makes it difficult for people in wheelchairs and the mechanism precludes people from operating the fountain who are not able to use their arms;”

“Prepare new or modified designs for seats, benches and drinking fountains to improve services for the young, disabled and elderly. New designs should be audited by an access consultant as part of the design and approvals process before implementing a program of replacing existing furniture.”

“It is also helpful for furniture such as drinking fountains to be placed in a consistent manner because people develop an expectation about where to find them.”

“A powder coated Brunswick Green has been the nominal standard colour for the City’s street furniture since 1985.
It is a dark, relatively neutral colour and therefore relatively unobtrusive in most of Melbourne’s streets and open spaces. It supports the idea that street furniture (as with streetscape design more generally) is important as a support for public activity, rather than as a branding device, and should allow people, shop-fronts, architecture and public artworks to dominate the character of the city. The appearance of natural metal finishes such as brushed stainless steel are also sufficiently subtle – being various shades of grey – that they are visually ‘neutral’ and would also support the aim for a relatively subtle, unobtrusive street furniture that harmonises with the wide variety of colours and materials in city buildings.”

“Most City of Melbourne street furniture is made from steel although some parks furniture is made from timber (eg. some parks furniture has wooden slats and a metal frame).
Wood feels warmer in cold weather and cooler in summer in comparison to metals. However, timber dries more slowly after rain, is harder to maintain and easier to vandalise – eg. by burning as well as through breakage and carved graffiti.”

“The end user a broad sense, any person using or wanting to use the street furniture is an end user. Understanding the needs of the end user relies upon knowledge of the needs of the stakeholders seeking use of the footpath.
This information is currently obtained through surveys, analysis of land use patterns, an assessment of local and visitor demand and staff experience – built up over many years.”

Drinking fountains

These are photos of drinking fountains around Melbourne.

Well this is just a sink, but I thought it looked similar to drinking fountains out there.

So here are some photos

We had no power at our house yesterday as a truck smashed into a power line and knocked it down. We had trouble getting home to as our section of road was all blocked off to traffic. The power was out for almost 11 hours, our heater wouldn’t work so the house was freezing and luckily we have a gas stove so dinner wasn’t too hard. It was very quiet in the dark all the house around where also in total darkness needless to say not to much work got done as I needed the internet and laptop, but I did spend a lot of time writing Chinese characters out. I got the results for my Chinese test 8.25 out of 10 so I was very happy, it was also interesting to hear that I talk like someone who knows Chinese originally my teacher (老师) thought that one of my parents spoke Chinese, then I explained that I had been there and she said she can tell in the way I talk that I have been influenced by the language.

Project Proposal – Melbourne’s watering hole

Project Synopsis

Saying no to plastic drinking bottles would stop the wastefulness of resources, not only plastics, but also the large transportation system of bottled water, and the privatisation of water to some degree. The alternative to bottled water is public drinking fountains which are accessible to all. Though there is much stigma attached to these and so far has mostly been undesirable to the public within Melbourne. The solution is to find out why so few are being utilised by the public and how to get more people to use them within the city of Melbourne.

Project Aim & Objectives

The overall objective behind the development of drinking fountains to be used within Melbourne is so people can say “No to Plastic Drink Bottles” this alternative system provides free water to all people of Melbourne within convenient locations.

My intention of this project is to create a rigours product that showcases all aspects of a product and the system it sits within. This means a well researched, documented and developed concept, prototype, infrastructures involved, social and environmental considerations are all taken into account.

Objectives of the project include:

1. To undertake research in the forms of questioners, observations, photo documentation, articles, books, internet sites, blogs and interviews as to put people think of the current system and design of drinking fountains, the issues involved with public products eg: vandalism, in use when one also want to use it. Can indoor drinking Fountains be used within offices?
2. Document, question analyse findings of research and see if other organisations, offices or councils wish to be part of the project.
3. To design a drinking fountain that is coherent with our city of Melbourne’s culture and the future direction in which Melbourne is heading. Is there to be a serious of drinking fountains due to locations?
4. Asses the locations for its use and figure out areas where it would be in most demand.
5. Upon completion of final concepts create CAD model/s of the final design and produce technical drawings.
6. Look into the manufacturing what is involved, what materials and costs.
7. Create a prototype of the drinking fountain, weather handmade or using rapid prototypes.
8. Take to potential uses and gain feed back. See if it is addressing all the problems identified.
9. Create a business/proposal of how to implement these drinking fountains around Melbourne. Brand the Drinking fountain project so it has a strong identity within Melbourne.
10. Create a thesis book.

Project Rationale

I have always been passionate about sustainability but find that it becomes complex and hard for people to adapt and change their lives to and some amount of willingness is involved. As time poor people choose the fastest and most convenient ways to live it seems all targets and goals of reducing carbon emissions is impossible. I am starting with a simple product and system that reduces transportation, manufacturing, plastics all by eliminating the use of Plastic water bottles and users choosing the free alternative drinking from a public Drinking fountain located conveniently inside their local park outside their office building, along the streets near their house.

As designers we should firstly assess the needs for new products and if the ones out there are sufficient enough. I believe this is the case with this project as currently all drinking fountains through out the city look different and some have ended up looking like glorified taps with no connection or relevance to the city and the people within it.

Water has become such a controversial topic within Melbourne as every one knows we haven’t got enough left in the dams to sustain ourselves and that the rain to fill up the dams isn’t going to come. Water has always come so easily to us we have never had to work for it, we have taps located conveniently all around inside and outside our house and we wish to continue this walking down the street on our way to work carrying it around in single use bottles and endlessly buying new ones. If people could feel more connected to water as a precious resources that isn’t always as plentiful as one thought this, it may trigger them to become aware of their own water patterns.

Hopefully the new design of the drinking fountain will make people engage with their city more, they can be on the lookout for them so they know where the closest one is when the get thirsty. They can become part of the community and city and be something which helps to make up the city of Melbourne even if it’s just something simple and not noticeable like the way street signs make up a city. I want tourists to be able to come to Melbourne along with ordinary Melbournians and feel they are continual part of Melbourne’s way of life and routines. As communities regulate everything deciding the values in place it has to be rapidly accepted as the normal thing to do with out questioning it.

I hope to develop a body of work that not only shows I can undertake design problems and tasks from a product/production point of view but also from a deep contextual type of view. As for anything to be improved upon it must be realised it was originally created a specific way for a reason and unless all parameters are explored we will be trapped continually within the same loop. I wish to embed sustainability into all projects I undertake so they no longer become a feature but something which is integral to the design.

SWOT Analysis

Strengths: This project can help engage the community as their input is needed to create a drinking fountain that fits into the culture of Melbourne. There are high levels of sustainability as I am attempting to move people away from bottled water, to public drinking fountains. There is potential to expand the project and look where the waste water can be used, eg: watering parks, gardens. The promotion of drinking more water helps people to live healthier lives staying hydrated and avoiding high sugary carbonated drinks. Can look into where the water comes from, potential to capture drinking water from roofs.

Weaknesses: My lack of knowledge about materials which are desirable for public use and that can sustain high amounts of run off water. The cost of Manufacture as each unit will be expensive to build and in such situations is spent on by the councils so needs to meet many peoples approval. Melbourne’s population density the locations are most effective where there are large amounts of people around. There will be a lot of opposition as people will believe the goal of ‘No Water Bottles’ is unattainable or firstly don’t see a problem using water bottles.

Opportunities: This project helps Melbourne’s city council to develop and meet sustainability goals as no more plastic bottles will be used. The could be opportunities in getting councils interested if the research proves that people can be taught and wish to use my drinking fountain design. Having drinking my drinking fountains as a place where people come together as more people end up within the same location.

Threats: As this project involves a few different levels not just the end product it is important the research is vigorous. The project will easily fail if they are placed in the wrong locations and no one uses them. People don’t understand the deeper meaning behind the project to stop using plastic drink bottles. Cost of manufacture is high.

Project Description

There will be 5 phases within the design process, though some areas will overlap and be revisited through the project these are:

Phase 1: Research

Brainstorming

Ideation/concept generation

Phase 2: Design Development

Phase 3: Detailed Design CAD work, engineering, technical drawings

Phase 4: Prototyping and Testing

Phase 5: Refinement ensuring the product illustrates its purpose.

Research	– Immersion within the project. Reading texts and literature related to the project. Including topic areas of public facilities, ownership and sharing, sustainability issues with plastic PET bottles, transportation systems of water, privatisation of water, where bottled water comes from, manufacturing and cost involved. – Existing products and solutions not only of drinking fountains see how they tackle problems with high moisture and wet areas. Image collection. – Photo dairies of existing drinking fountains a location map, people interacting with them, along with objects, situations and people of Melbourne that I see help to create the cities culture – Surveys, questionaries and interviews to see what people think about drinking fountains. Why do they use or not use them. – Material exploration, along with manufactures dealing with high use products and high resistance to breakage due to vandalism. – Waste water issues from the drinking fountains, water quality issues, hygiene issues. Are there any requirements or standards for drinking fountains
Product design and development	– Three key stages include the external styling, internal engineering and the system in place around the product. (where the water comes from, locations of drinking fountains etc) – Brainstorming, Ideation and concept generation – Current Problems with original drinking fountains and issues, how to get more people to use them and stop drinking out of water bottles. – Sketches and Exploration – Documentation and scenarios of drinking fountains – Illustrations – Explanations about the project so people know I am doing this to stop the use of Plastic Drink Bottles.
Detailed Design	– CAD using computer software to create visual representations of final design/s – Propose the concept to companies, councils and governments
Prototyping	– Utilization of various prototyping techniques CNC machine, SLA Rapid prototyping, model making 1:1 scales – User Testing & Feedback: seeing what is working and successful
Refinement	– Final Prototype – Business opportunities, branding the drinking fountain so people know of the project. Potential Investors.

Project Outcomes:

Research report, Product design and development folio which will be collated into the thesis.

Key Activities, Timeline & Budgeting/Costs

Semester 1 2009:

Refer to Gantt chart for time line.

Costs:

Tasks	Anticipated costs semester 1	Anticipated costs semester 2	Total
Drawing supplies and Printing	$50	$150	$200
Materials	$150	$150	$300
Manufacture, Model making		$250	$250
Books and resources	$50	$50	$100
Extra unexpected costs	$50	$50	$950

Project Deliverables

The deliverables for this project are:

1. A concept for a drinking fountain designed for the city of Melbourne
2. This concept will incorporate solutions as to why people are not already using Drinking fountains around Melbourne.
3. A product that understands and reflects the systems it belongs to.
4. CAD Model/s
5. Rapid Prototype/ Model
6. Supplementary Posters and Documents showing the goal is no plastic drink bottles
7. A Business Plan of some structure that can be shown to councils and organisations
8. Research Report, Design & Manufacturing Report
9. Thesis (Approximately 10,000 words)

Project benefits

By completing this process I am given the opportunity to engage with industry in a professional context, with a project which has wider goals and objectives than just an end product. As a student I can still hold onto the luxury of being idealistic about my approach, and continue developing people’s awareness to sustainability issues. On completion of this project I can start my career as a practising designer knowing I have the capabilities needed to not only deliver products but make others understand the deeper objectives of projects, and the complexities involved. I also hope upon completion of the project I have a design that can potentially be enjoyed by many within the wider community.

Measures of Success

Key Performance Indicators

1. Project delivered within specified time frame, within budget and to presented specifications, aims and objectives.
2. A CAD model and prototype that demonstrates a high level of detail and understanding of the final manufacturing process and its requirements being used within the public realm.
3. Market research, financial plan, marketing plan that clearly demonstrate that the final concept as a worth while product and investment for councils/cities, reasons why this project should be backed and supported.
4. Showing that the goal of ‘NO WATER BOTTLES’ is attainable though the right design solution.
5. A narrative document of the process and my experience, including visual and written records and extensive amount of personal skills & knowledge gained throughout the course.