Living Water International

“iFormBuilder has opened our eyes and is causing our organization to turn a new corner in the way we work.” – Jack Beach, LWIR

About Living Water International Rwanda

Living Water International is a non-profit Christian organization aiming to deliver clean water to those in need around the world. Currently operating in 23 countries in Africa, India, Central and South America, we provide drinking water by drilling wells and installing hand pumps. Alongside increasing water access we work to train community members in proper hygiene and sanitation as well as sustainability of the hand pump.  Living Water International works closely with national and local government ministries to combine efforts for the greatest impact possible in the WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) sector to benefit community beneficiaries.

About the Project

LWIR captures incredible amounts of data from each and every project. From hydrogeological surveys to technical information about the drilling process to water quality testing and maintenance reports.  There is a huge need for a robust reporting system. LWIR decided to pilot iFormBuilder in one of the largest country programs in the organization— Rwanda. iFormBuilder proved to save incredible amounts of time and brought more accuracy and accountability to the work that is being done.

Challenges

The challenges associated with LWIR’s paper method:

• English literacy skills.
• Missing pieces of reports necessary for technical data.
• GPS coordinates showing up in other countries.
• Numbers were misinterpreted.
• Inaccurate data via copying written data into Excel.
• Time delays associated with getting the report from the field would take on average one week, but could take up to 3 weeks.
• No way to monitor what was happening in the field.
• Crews would be so tired after a full day of work they would forget to write the report because it seemed a daunting task to them.

Solution

Living Water International Rwanda uses iFormBuilder to:

• Create and deploy assessment questionnaires that include one-hundred-and-forty detailed questions about the following topics: project history, hardware, sanitation, and community behavior and water quality.
• Increase the quality of results through enumerators access of assessment questionnaires using mobile devices: iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPhone 5S, iPad Mini and iPad 2.
• Maximize data by having it accessible from anywhere in the world via the Internet the moment it was submitted from the field.
• Automate an email report once data is captured and synced.
• Use 3^rd Party integration tool, Klipfolio to monitor the program.

Results

Living Water International Rwanda now:

• Cuts down on time and error by enumerators collecting the data using Apple devices in real time.
• No longer have to rely on enumerators to input data at the end of the day for reporting is done as they collect.

Knowing the cost of unsuccessful wells, LWIR can:

• Determine exactly how much money was spent on unsuccessful, or dry, wells this year (over $12,000!), which was previously not captured.
• Calculate what the success rate for drilling is and reference the Hydrogeologist’s estimate to see if he is correct.
• Show collected data to gain more support for new projects.
• Plan properly so costs are reduced.
• Properly documented and organized data is beneficial to the country program’s success.

Project Champion

Jack Beach is the Technical Advisor for Living Water International Rwanda (LWIR). He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering Technology and is currently pursuing a Master of Science in Industrial Engineering online from the University of Tennessee Space Institute. Jack moved to Rwanda in 2009 and now speaks the local language of Rwanda, Kinyarwanda, fluently. He has worked on water projects extensively across Africa including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Central African Republic and Mozambique. He enjoys riding his motorcycle in the thousand hills of Rwanda and exploring the great outdoors.