The Sunlight Pump: optimized for smallholders through collaborative partnerships

After the overwhelming success of disseminating over 2 million treadle pumps, iDE began in the mid-2000s to look for the next smallholder equipment revolution. The shift by farmers from treadle pumps to small petrol-powered pumps opened up an opportunity to research a motorized improvement that would be more efficient and affordable for small farmers.

With the assistance of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), iDE helped develop and test solar pumps optimized for the needs of smallholder farmers. One pump involved a design created at the Berne University of Applied Sciences in Bienne, a renowned solar lab that had previously developed a highly efficient solar racing car that won The World Solar Challenge, going 3,000 kilometers across Australia in 1990. iDE began to test this pump in the field in Bangladesh in 1990, and based on the feedback received, the University redesigned the pump, applying principles of human-centered design. New prototypes were then tested in Burkina Faso and Honduras.

In 2016, the University spun off a company, ennos, to mass produce and mass market the new pump, named the Sunlight Pump, which utilizes a robust progressive cavity pump and electronics that allow for flexible panel configurations between 100 to 500 Watts. The Sunlight Pump was specifically designed for smallholder farmers, with attention focused on making sure that it was user-friendly and highly efficient. At the maximum head of 40 meters, the Sunlight Pump still lifts about 9,000 liters per day with a 400 Watt panel (i.e., a load of 9 tons over 40 meters every day). Ennos has entered into a licensing agreement with Jain Irrigation Systems Ltd. for the manufacturing of the Sunlight Pump, and the two companies will work together to market and distribute the pump according to each partner’s strength.

In these kinds of development activities, it is important to establish distinct roles and responsibilities for the partnering organizations. For a technology to be successful in small farm situations, the engineers and designers must be flexible to adapt their offerings based on feedback from farmers and on-site testing. The Sunlight Pump was significantly improved and modified to make it more user-friendly and more sturdy for use under harsh field conditions.

iDE and partners bring viable technologies within reach of remote farmers—ensuring that user feedback is an important part of the development and human-centered design principles are observed. By partnering with iDE, inventors can bridge the geographic and cultural divide between smallholder farmers and modern engineering practice.