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Metz

http://marysproject.com/images/stories/pdf/BudgetPlanDonationsNeeded.pdf

Building of a Community Library in the Ajoung Community of Jonglei State, in the South Sudan Village of Paliau,

Building of a Library with Books, Laptops, Internet, and Educational Computer Software Programs – (with the Library structure in place to expand for an elementary primary school in the future)

On the Mission Trip we will meet with many community leaders, pastors, and government officials, and will visit many villages. Together we will pick out the most suitable location in the village and will work with local engineers and architects to develop the most sustainable construction technique for that specific village, with expansion as a goal.

The library will provide education for children, youth, and adults.

Contributions of public domain e books, kindles, open source tech plans is very much needed.

Metz

Just had a phone call with Atem, from Mission Hope South Sudan regarding using the GVCS plans and others to rebuild his village in Africa that has been decimated by war.

The CEB block machine here is a bit too advanced for them because of the lack resources. They are going towards the eco block hand operated CEB press used in Brazil.

They are very interested in the lifetrak machine however. They are trying to balance costs and can only really come up with funds for one big machine so the lifetrak is a more suitable choice.

The next trip to Africa will be December 7.

dorkmo

how long do they stay each trip? are there places that sell metal and stuff? or at least where would the closest place be i wonder. if the large heavy things could be sources locally i think it could work with a little help from the ose crew.

dorkmo

oh i see 3 weeks. if they figured out the logistics of all the parts and stuff ahead of time it'd be possible to build a tractor.

dorkmo

whats the gasoline supply like? it might be premature to try to use a gasoline power cube. might be good to wait a year still they get the pelitizer and steam engine designs finalized.

Metz

A steam engine would be nice, However due to the climate which is kind of arid and dry. think west texas. Burnable material is in short supply, whereas a couple hundred litres of gas or diesel can be bought in a co-op and the one tractor can plow everyone's field.

They are also in the search for a grain mill.

I am not sure how long they will stay this trip. The goal is full time living in Africa. They are grateful that America took them in as refugees, but they want to go home and rebuild now that the war is over. With the right tools, they will be able to build a prosperous nation, They are not asking for handouts, just tools to do it themselves.

dorkmo

i did a quick search for steel near south sudan

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=steel+near:south+sudan&hl=en&sll=16.256867,31.245117&sspn=40.340701,53.569336&vpsrc=6&hq=steel&t=m&z=6

uganda and old sudan seemed like the only places with anything retail

http://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=juba+south+sudan&daddr=Kampala,+Uganda+(Steel+and+Tube+Industries)&hl=en&sll=11.831874,30.217636&sspn=42.032806,53.569336&geocode=Feg7SgAdgC3iASn5tfO8SoASFzEzxEZjKDmY2A%3BFUxjBQAdq6HyASFgVJa_KOK3Zg&vpsrc=0&mra=ls&t=m&z=8

two day drive

http://www.stil.co.ug/en/?page_content=products&pdtpage=4#products i dont really see square tubing on their product list but i bet they would know how to get some. should we call?

dorkmo

i dont know a whole lot about steel but i believe 4x4 steel tubes require a bit more advanced processes than other stuff. i know theyre electro welded or what ever. not sure if they just squeeze a round tube into a square or what. just wanted to point out that it might be hard to get but its doable.

Metz

Welding would not be hard to get done, although it will be oxy acytelyne most likely. They are mostly farming by hand now. A couple hand operated CEB machines, and a tractor with power cube would work wonders out there. The power cube could be used to run a grain mill when not powering the tractor.

DreamBuilder

Oxy acetylene welding ( called gas welding) does give a smoother finish than mig welding. Flame is used to puddle the metal before continuing the weld, so slower.

I would suggest solar steam generation for electricity. LifeTrac could run on batteries + electric motors to negate fuel.

dhtractormfgr

Hello Metz,

What has developed with this? I am interested in writing up something about the potential utility (or lack of) of OSE machines in Sub Saharan Africa. Can we chat? That you have spoken with people on the ground in Sudan about OSE seems to me to be a VERY important development. Can we chat? hbetts12[at]students.polytechnic.org

Nikolayhg

Frithjof Bergmann is searching also for solutions on how to start in South Africa: http://osede.org/2012/04/frithjof-bergmann-and-development-in-south-africa/

Metz

I heard from the leader of the group last week. Their project is still on track but not without adventures.

In December a group of lost boys went back to South Sudan along with project leader. One member of the group had a relative kidnapped while he was here. He got the relative freed, but he was delayed in South Sudan for several months for the legal process.

He finally made it back to the US a couple weeks ago, quite thin. He was on leave of absence from his work and nearly lost his job.

They are raising funds to build the OSRL CEB Press as it is mechanically simpler and cheaper to operate in the remote village they are building in. It takes several days to travel over land to their village. They have no electricity and still need lots of armed security, as the same perpetrators of Darfur are active in their area.

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