Q&A with Cutwork CMO Bryce Willem
As the Materials World team noticed several questions being asked in the comments about the Cortex Shelter, we reached out to the architecture and design studio behind the shelter design, Cutwork, to ask for some more information.
Image courtesy of Cutwork.
By Idha Valeur Here we talk to Cutwork Chief Marketing Officer, Bryce Willem, about infrastructure, cost and the shelter’s toilets.
How will the toilet, shower and water aspect work?
The toilet is a dry toilet system. A container underneath it seals in waste, which then can be collected at a sanitation station within the camp. The whole idea behind including the toilet in the design is that public toilets in refugee settlements have been conducive to lots of problems, assault, and insecurity, particularly at night for women and children. The in-house option ensures security, privacy, and greater stability in these settlements. The shower and sink run using a gravity shower – essentially a large water container that is placed higher than the faucets to harness gravity without any pumps needed. The grey water from the sink and shower are collected in another container which can be collected and processed at a settlement’s sanitation station.
How can the shelter work in areas where there is no infrastructure such as a water and drainage system?
To this effect, the drainage tanks will need to be collected in sanitation stations within these camps on a routine basis.
Who will be paying for these shelters?
Governments and humanitarian organizations are in the best positions to acquire and distribute the Cortex Shelter. We are exploring how we can improve the design and production process as well to make cheaper at smaller volume orders for other applications as well.
And how much does one shelter cost approximately?
The Cortex Shelter has not yet reached the market and is currently moving through the final phase of development. We are working to reduce production costs even further in this phase. At this point, the target price point is under $4,000 USD per unit, and we are on track to reduce this further.
What is the next step for Cutwork and the Cortex shelter?
Right now, we are taking pre-order requests, securing additional investments to expedite this final phase of development in order to bring the shelter to market. We have several high-volume leads already around the world and are excited to hopefully get to implement within new refugee settlements soon.
