Sumaq Wasi house CAT system installation

Sharing Knowledge and Expertise

Solar Collector-Accumulator-Transfer (CAT) System

The solar collector-accumulator-transfer (CAT) system design uses a solar energy collector and converts it into thermal energy to transfer it in a forced air flow. It then accumulates the heat through a stone bank of locally sourced river rocks where the flow of hot air from the collector stores this heat. Finally, it transmits the heat from the bank of hot stones to the houses, which causes this circuit to raise the temperature of the houses up to 17°C throughout the night. An important part of the CAT thermal system was that it was simple and sustainable to support large scale roll-out with easily obtainable materials in the remote regions.

“Affordable, accessible, and safe”

Jorge Soria, the PUCP group researcher and coordinator of the project, explained that the system has made a big difference to the family’s wellbeing as the region can experience more than 100 days of freezing temperatures. With limited resources of wood for heat, the CAT system supplies a renewable resource that makes heating homes affordable and accessible for all families. In addition, it is also safe, with no open flames or risk of carbon dioxide exposure from the burning of fuel inside.

“Solving complex problems does not always require complex solutions, and the CAT system is a great demonstration of innovation and sustainability at its best,” said Heloisa Schmidt, 91��Ƭ�� corporate sustainability manager. “By codesigning the CAT system with local communities at its heart, the program combines local knowledge and technical expertise to deliver a solution which is sustainable for the long term.”

Fact Box

What does the CAT thermal system include?

1) Collector: It is an inclined rectangular box and covered on one of its faces with black polycarbonate, located very close to the house and oriented towards the direction of the sun. This element will receive, or “collect”, thermal energy from the sun and transfer said energy to an air-filled box integrated into the Collector.

2) Accumulator: It is a closed wooden box, with six sides, with stones inside, which receives the hot air from the Collector and accumulates energy for one day on a regular basis, being able to extend that time up to two days if necessary.

3) Transmitter: The design of the houses will consider thermal insulation in the walls and ceiling, insulated wooden floor and double door or hall at the entrance. Thermal energy from the Accumulator will be transferred to the house at any time, and families from inside will be able to open or close the flow of hot air with a simple switch.

Why it matters

Innovation is required for scalability, maintenance, and replication. bechtel.org projects put results ahead of the ‘perfect solution’ to ensure that we build resilience to empower and strengthen underserved communities.

Our journey to Sumaq Wasi

Read Part 1 of the series to learn about how bechtel.org is helping harvest heat to protect households by building climate-resilient housing in Peru.

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The ongoing war in Ukraine has affected the shipment of agricultural products globally and exacerbated food insecurity in East Africa. In response, bechtel.org and partners sought ways to boost local output of maize, soybean, sunflower, and groundnuts, which also provide essential cooking oils in Zambia. 91��Ƭ��.org is collaborating on the project with consortium partners Empowering Farmers Foundation (EFF), AfricaGlobal Schaffer (AfGS), and USAID’s Africa Trade and Investment initiative (ATI).

“This project is a great fit for bechtel.org to meet its goal in empowering local partners” said Carla Costelloe, bechtel.org Project Team Leader. “91��Ƭ��’s project management and delivery expertise coupled with EFFs local knowledge and community engagement skills will ensure this project is delivered to time, budget and quality, but importantly, in partnership with the local communities we will be serving.”

The project will start with establishing several trading centers closer to small farms starting in the Eastern Province. This includes refurbishing community infrastructure, building local management capacity, providing transaction support to local farmers, and improving linkages between farmers, local buyers, and other supporting businesses.

"We must empower local agricultural communities to be food resilient for the long-term. This project aims to do just that," said Poorva Pandya, EFF Project Director. "Our long-term goal is to create a model that we can repeat and scale-up across more communities in Zambia, building local know-how and better access to productive centers, processing equipment, and business opportunities."

EFF will oversee the implementation and lead the engagement with small farms, local buyers, and government agencies. 91��Ƭ��.org is deploying a global team of project managers and engineers to join the EFF Zambia team to help deliver the project. AfGS will support the overall impact measurement and reporting.

91��Ƭ��.org enables 91��Ƭ��’s commercial capabilities to deliver Impact Infrastructure—infrastructure directly connected to social impact. 91��Ƭ��.org leverages more than 125 years of 91��Ƭ��’s innovation in infrastructure delivery. 91��Ƭ��’s delivery model has proven to consistently result in the shortest schedules in the industry. 91��Ƭ�� has delivered 25,000 projects in 160 countries on all seven continents, including process infrastructure for food systems.

About EFF

EFF is an affiliated entity of Export Trading Group (ETG) and supports the Group's sustainability agenda. They focus on smallholder farmers with training and extension in basic business skills and good agricultural practices, while strengthening farmer organizational capacities. In Zambia, EFF is actively working to build an equitable, sustainable, and inclusive food system through reforestation and integrated farming. EFF, in collaboration with the public sector and ETG Zambia, planted 7.4 million cashew trees over two years in Zambia, which contributes to greenhouse gas reduction, increases forest tree cover, and deploys soil carbon sequestration on small-scale farms while adopting careful land-use planning and management.

About AfGS

AfGS is a U.S.-based private company based in Washington, DC. For over 50 years, they have delivered over 900 projects across 52 African countries in agribusiness, energy, and related infrastructure sectors. From planning, commercial diplomacy, and financing through implementation, operations, and distribution, AfGS provides services for all phases of the project lifecycle. AfGS also helps financial institutions and governments seeking assistance with trade and investment promotion, as well as private corporations seeking assistance with market access.

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91��Ƭ�� employees Heloisa Schmidt, manager, Corporate Sustainability, and Mellissa Case, sustainable development manager, Mining and Metals, reflect on their recent visit to Peru. In this three-part series, they share their on-the-ground experiences talking to 91��Ƭ�� colleagues, partners, and community members.

91��Ƭ��.org was created in 2019 to deliver sustainable and scalable projects with impact infrastructure at the core of building community wellbeing. In Peru, bechtel.org is supporting the Peruvian government in addressing a long-standing climate and health crisis affecting thousands of indigenous Peruvians living in the remote Andean mountains. The innovative partnership is helping harvest heat to protect households by building climate-resilient housing.  Heloisa and Mellissa went to Peru to see the progress for themselves.

High in the Peruvian Andes, farmers tend to their flocks of llama and alpacas and go about their daily lives as they have done for hundreds of years. At an elevation of more than 4,500 metres above sea level, women in colorful traditional attire dot the sparse landscape, spinning wool while watching their flock. Men in equally colorful attire can also be seen high on the ridges herding animals to a new pasture. They live in mud adobe-style houses, an ancient building style that uses earth and organic binding material often resourced from nearby clay deposits.

In this idyllic scene, there is a hidden danger that contributes to hundreds of respiratory illnesses and related fatalities each year, especially among children, the elderly, and livestock. The locals call it ‘Heladas,’ or extreme frost. 

While Peru is known for having a pleasant climate in most regions, this isn’t the case year-round. In the frost season, waves of Heladas are common. In 2010, the temperature dropped below -20 Celsius in the Southern Andes, causing hundreds of deaths from pneumonia, mostly among children. In 2017, more than 180,000 alpacas in the Ayacucho region succumbed to the frost, which severely impacted food supplies in the communities, who rely on the animals for sustenance.

For decades, indigenous communities in Peru have been dealing with the consequences of Heladas. Now, climate change is exacerbating these impacts.  The is committed to finding a sustainable and scalable solution for more than 300,000 Peruvians living in these harsh conditions. 91��Ƭ��.org, together with the government and communities, the , and Cambridge Research and Technology, formed an innovative partnership to support the Ministry of Housing and its Sumaq Wasi housing program to address the issue.

During our project visit to Peru, we took the opportunity to learn first-hand more about the Sumaq Wasi houses, the thermal challenges, the partnership that has been built, and the value it is bringing to these remote villages.

Our journey started in Lima. This bustling city and capital of Peru is a mix of modern infrastructure coexisting with ancient Incan and Spanish architecture. City streets and buildings intersect with Huacas or Wak’as, signalling pre-Inca and early Inca civilizations. As we drive through the gates of the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru (PUCP), we are again surrounded by ancient architecture. The campus is built on part of the Maranga complex, a pre-Columbian site that functioned from 250 AD to 1532 AD. Now an archeological site, Maranga encompasses more than 14 pyramids, 100 small adobe buildings, burial sites, and Huacas. To the south of the university is Los Caminos, a 467-metre fragment of the Inca Trail. PUCP was founded in 1917 and is the oldest private institution of higher learning in the country. In addition to being the custodian of some of Lima’s most significant historical infrastructure, it is also renowned for innovation and technology in sustainability, and educating high- performing leaders, including our host, 91��Ƭ�� Region President, Latin America, Carlos Alarco, who graduated from the university with a mechanical engineering degree.

PUCP is also the location of the pilot “CAT thermal system,” designed for the Sumaq Wasi housing program and prototype. Carlos became a key influencer in the formation of the CAT-Sumaq Wasi partnership in 2019 when he learned about the Ministry of Housing’s plans to build 20,000 new houses – Sumaq Wasi – in areas affected by frost in the regions of Cusco, Puno, Apurímac, and the Sierra de Arequipa. Intrigued by the program, Carlos approached the Ministry and forged an agreement to work together with bechtel.org and the university. 

Jorge Soria, the PUCP group researcher and coordinator of the project, explained that the construction of the first prototype at the university began in 2020 and included the thermal system and two typical houses, one made of adobe and the other made of noble material. The Solar Collector-Accumulator-Transfer (CAT) initiative aims to generate a difference of at least 20°C between the exterior and interior of homes in the high Andean regions, using cost-effective, sustainable, and easy-to-build technologies to improve the quality of life of the local population. bechtel.org accepted the challenge and started its on-the-ground work—building partnerships, innovating solutions, and committing to lasting positive impact for families in the Andean region.

For Augusto Cauti, executive director of the CAT-PUCP Project, the development of the CAT system shows that the public sector, the private sector, academia, and the population itself can successfully work together to improve the quality of life of the most vulnerable. 

“We can successfully work together

to improve the quality of life of the most vulnerable.”

– Augusto Cauti, Executive Director, CAT-PUCP Project

“In this project, the communities themselves work with the executing units of the National Rural Housing Program (PNVR), so we have all the parties working and achieving tangible results,” he says.

This innovative heating model has become a reality thanks to an inter-institutional collaboration agreement between the Ministry of Housing, Construction and Sanitation (MVCS), the PUCP, the National Training Service for the Construction Industry (Sencico), and various private institutions, including 91��Ƭ��, and experts from Cambridge Research and Technology, Price Waterhouse Cooper, Ferreycorp, FLSmidth, among others. The goal of the partnership is to support the deployment and scaling of the CAT system to 60,000 homes.

Follow our journey to the Peruvian highlands.

Join us for Part 2 of this blog series, when we will go deeper into the innovations and work necessary to heat the homes of indigenous families across the Andean region.

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In the Sumaq Wasi project, bechtel.org, 91��Ƭ��’s social enterprise, along with the government’s National Rural Housing Program (NRHP), the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru (PUCP) School of Engineering, and Cambridge Research and Technology, is working to deliver a comprehensive solution as this is much more than a housing issue – it’s a health, adaptation, and scaling challenge.

To futureproof hundreds of thousands of people, the solution needs to be sustainable, social, and durable, which is easy to say but much harder to do. The more we examined the factors complexifying the wider problem, the more clear-eyed we became. And because this is a national issue, at the end of the day, the government, PUCP, local businesses, and the communities will be the “eco-system” to sustain this effort beyond the project.

Our approach  

As we approached the project, we had the benefit of an intuitive “Peruvian plus global team” with backgrounds in engineering, construction, logistics, law, social development, and political science who could break down the challenge into clusters of issues and make connections. We also benefitted from 91��Ƭ��’s long presence in Peru, enabling us to leverage relationships, resources, and cultural knowledge.

During the ideation phase, human design (putting people at the center of the innovation) and systems thinking (connecting institutions and relationships that will affect the innovation) became more apparent as an overall method. To put it into perspective, we considered a range of issues. For example, how do we localize the solution? This includes appropriate technology to capture, store, and transfer heat energy; using native materials; gaining social acceptance and adoption by families; and ensuring preventive maintenance of the technology. Then, how do we logistically and sustainably deliver this? The families are in some of the most remote places in the Andes. If you are manufacturing the system in Lima and transporting to Cusco or Puno, it can take up to 30 hours by truck. How do we scale to reach everyone? There’s currently no standardization of the system or value chain to support it. The total cost of the system also needs to be cost prohibitive. Finally, we need to internalize external events like frequent changes in political and government leadership, along with community issues related to these transitions. Disruptions, delays, and “starting over” with new government officials are just some of the effects.

Besides the technical connection we all have to the project, we also have an emotive one. This was a common thread among the bechtel.org team and our partners that helped us to stay the course during the project’s many twists and turns.

A “pilot-test-position for scale” framework was devised to guide the project’s implementation. We felt it was the best way to position a new solar harvesting system as a national-level solution. Three strategies continue to steer our work:

• Reorient the conventions of “appropriate technology” (i.e., simple, small scale, localized). A new solar harvesting system to keep families safe and healthy not only must be fit-for-purpose, but also scalable and replicable to meet a broader societal need.
• Keep the stakeholder eco-system integrated, engaged, and enabled – not just people, but also institutions. NRHP is delivering the houses in which the system will be installed. They are involved with budgeting, planning, implementation, quality assurance, etc., and will oversee this effort beyond the immediate project.
• Don’t put the impact at risk. We need to ensure the human design and systems thinking is integral throughout the project’s delivery and part of the overall playbook for scale-up.

Positioning for impact

In the pilot phase, we worked closely with PUCP and NRHP to engage many affected families to demonstrate early proof of concept for a new solar harvesting system. The system not only achieved the living temperature of 16-18 Celsius (61-64 degrees Fahrenheit) when –20Celsius (-4 degrees Fahrenheit) outside, but it’s close to being pre-validated by the NRHP as the technical standard for Peru. The design and performance of the system was based on family input and early acceptance and adoption, as well as the capabilities and resources of local institutions. Safe trials were conducted at the PUCP’s Lima campus before piloting in Cusco over 11,000 feet above sea level. The system uses native materials and local supplies, but the design continued to be enhanced to optimize the capture, storage, and transfer of thermal heat. The design is now the basis for fabrication by a Peruvian manufacturer to determine the true cost of the system, as well as generate alternatives to improve cost efficiencies and sustainability. Finally, given the remoteness of the families, preventive maintenance training is being developed so that adult family members can understand how it operates and perform basic upkeep to prolong the system’s performance.

In parallel, because NHRP is the project management organization, we trained and supported their technical professionals to help improve both the quality and pace of delivering the housing.  They went from 1,000 houses delivered in six months to 9,000 in the same timeframe, which is a significant achievement given the government’s target to reach nearly 300,000 people in some of the harshest terrain on Earth.

The next phase involves testing the system with thousands of people in different locations, altitudes, and climate zones. Once this is completed, the system should be ready for a national scale-up.

We’ve developed an impact measurement methodology that we’ll road test on this and other projects and refine along the way. Because many external factors are out of our control, it may be tough to attribute our technical contribution alone, for instance, to a 50% reduction in respiratory illnesses on the Sumaq Wasi project. There are reasons for this, such as multiple stakeholders, interventions, and other cause-and-effect relationships. Moreover, because of our business model, we may not be on the project long enough to see the long-term impact, which can take years to occur. Yet, we can be there long enough to help position the project and enable others to achieve that 50% reduction. Human design and systems thinking is about being able to shape and influence in order to design and build. This may be an overlooked attribution when we talk about impact measurement, but instinctively, we know it matters.

We’re applying a similar pilot-test-position for scale approach to our canal regeneration project in India, which aims to demonstrate proof of concept using nature-based solutions to reduce flooding, improve health and safety, sequester carbon, and generate productive and sustainable livelihoods like eco-tourism.

As 91��Ƭ��’s social enterprise, bechtel.org is challenging itself as an organization to improve the social impact of infrastructure delivery. Can we make social impact central to the development, design, and build? How do we prevent social impact from being diluted when you factor in political externalities, return on investment, collective capacities, etc.? We don’t have all the answers, but through our projects, partnerships, and 91��Ƭ��’s unique experience, we have an opportunity to facilitate a new body of knowledge to help the social impact sector originate and deliver better infrastructure projects.

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91��Ƭ��’s Manager of Corporate Relations, Stu Jones, said: “Public-private partnerships maximize sustainable impacts in addressing critical infrastructure development challenges in Africa. We are proud of bechtel.org's partnerships with USAID and other businesses in Zambia and across the continent – our efforts will save lives, improve the future of the continent, and ensure sustainable outcomes.”

A public-private partnership approach will increase efficiency, align with the USAID and African governments’ development strategies, speed up solutions, transition to local ownership, and ensure return on moderate investment with scalable impact. USAID business partners will explore ways to implement similar programs across the continent and across sectors that need support and development.

About bechtel.org: As a social enterprise, bechtel.org was established to deliver Impact Infrastructure to help improve the lives of people. Every project starts with a social need – for example, tackling life-threatening illnesses or establishing a safe haven for women to prosper. From there, we work closely with local communities, agencies, and experts, and draw upon 91��Ƭ��’s global engineering, construction, and project management experience to develop a framework for project delivery. To date, bechtel.org implemented projects aimed at reversing the rising number of illnesses and deaths brought on by extreme frost in the Peruvian Andes and integrating nature-based solutions to bolster flood resilience in India.

: USAID, through , is partnering with 91��Ƭ��’s social enterprise bechtel.org, agribusiness/energy firm AfricaGlobal Schaffer, and South Africa-based firm Export Trading Group and its social impact arm, Empowering Farmers Foundation, to address the global food security crisis. The partnership will promote shared prosperity by increasing the supply and quality of maize on the African continent. While 80 percent of smallholder farmers in Zambia produce maize, maize contributes up to 30 percent of the country’s post-harvest losses. When surplus maize is wasted and damaged maize is sold for less than its value, market dynamics, stability, and job growth are all impacted. This partnership will help to solve these challenges by building green, Smart Integrated District Aggregation Centers in areas where improving production will have huge impacts. The first phase of the partnership will prioritize the construction, start-up, and operationalization of seven centers in high-production areas in Zambia by the May harvest season. Then, the program will scale up to 23 centers to provide approximately 100,000 metric tons of maize and other crops and potentially avoid more than 800 metric tons of carbon – equivalent to around 80,000 gallons of consumed diesel. Moreover, one-third of the centers will be run by women smallholder farmers. Eliminating Zambia’s post-harvest maize loss will also provide over 1.5 million people with their necessary calorie requirements, thus significantly reducing hunger and malnutrition.

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Photo courtesy of ICLEI.

Addressing the challenge at hand

In the port city of Kochi, the natural transport infrastructure system, created by the crisscross of canals and rivers, has served as a source of socio-economic development supporting irrigation, fishing, transportation, and tourism. However, due to the frequent and extreme flooding along with urbanization and pollution, the canals have become contaminated, causing health risks to those who use the canals for bathing, fishing, and cooking. Climate change increases the need for sustainable alternatives to the Kochi government’s business-as-usual concrete improvements on the canal system.

Uniting nature and engineering to create enduring solutions

Partnering with , global insurance provider , and the , bechtel.org  will evaluate and develop a green-grey infrastructure concept to pilot alongside Kochi’s canal restoration efforts. The concept will explore the use of sustainable enhancements along the canal including planting mangroves, wetland construction, and use of porous surfaces for the canal walls combined with strategically placed breakwaters, permeable fencing, and dikes.

“We’re excited to partner with ICLEI South Asia and Swiss Re. We believe this holistic approach using biodiversity science, engineering, risk management, and relevant experiences can make green-grey infrastructure a scalable, repeatable, and resilient solution for Fort Kochi’s canals and other locations,” said Tam Nguyen, bechtel.org’s general manager.

“ICLEI South Asia has been working with Kochi Municipal Corporation on issues related to sustainable urban development for over a decade. Floods are a major challenge faced by the city. We are happy to partner with bechtel.org and Swiss Re to initiate the work on integrating nature-based solutions and grey infrastructure to restore canals. This will help to build long- term flood resilience in the city,” said Emani Kumar, executive director for ICLEI South Asia.

Strong partnerships and scalable solutions

Supporting the Kochi municipal government, ICLEI South Asia and bechtel.org will perform the front-end work on one of the canals to design the infrastructure approach and help educate affected communities and local stakeholders about the pilot project’s impact.

The project aims to integrate and scale the adoption of nature-based solutions with civil infrastructure to bolster flood resilience and generate sustainable livelihoods for long-term economic development.

About bechtel.org

As a social enterprise, was established to deliver Impact Infrastructure tied to the wellbeing of people in vulnerable communities. Our team works closely with local agencies and experts, and draws upon 91��Ƭ��’s global engineering, construction, and project management experience, to identify and develop projects that make a social impact. We share data and lessons learned to maximize the benefits and help the developing world build better and grow stronger.

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