Week 8

After talking to the greywater professor, we had a better idea of how the product works. We can turn the greywater patent into a product that we can sell to construction companies, radiant heating companies, or to homeowners directly depending on our business plan and strategy. The product is an integrated system of filtration, disinfection, and organic compound removal using a photocatalytic disinfection technology viable in small spaces (exterior walls of a house) The system uses sunlight for water disinfection, and can also act as a thermal mass to control daily temperature swings by absorbing heat during the day and releasing it through the night. The new exterior wall building system will significantly decrease water use allowing homeowners to save up to 100% on water cost. This brings a significant incentive to homeowners for not having to pay for water.

After completing our value proposition canvas and talking to the professors, we realized that a good avenue for selling our product would be to sell to construction companies and heating companies because we could sell hundreds of our product at one time rather than one at a time if we sold to homeowners. One of the main customer gains that is highlighted in our canvas is the fact that we can save people money on their energy and water bills because of the efficiency of our system. In addition, we can add values to homes and properties by decentralizing greywater filtration as this reduces water waste and is environmentally friendly. One of the pitfalls we may end up facing is installation because it may be difficult to install our system in existing homes.

We are continuing our market research currently. We created a survey to give to homeowners and are getting family and friends to fill it out. In addition, we are in contact with a few solar and radiant heat companies in the bay area. We will soon get their perspectives on the product and how it could potentially be integrated into their product. After we talk to all the companies, we will know exactly what direction to take with our product.