Almost half the world’s population still wash their clothes by hand, and this arduous chore largely falls to women and girls. Dr. Navjot Sawhney founded the Washing Machine Project and created the manual Divya washing machine to put an end to this back-breaking, time-consuming task, ensuring that the people it falls to have more time to earn, learn, and enjoy life.
In remote, low-income and displaced communities across the world, people are still washing their clothes by hand. This job, which takes up around 20 hours a week, typically falls to women and girls. When Dr. Navjot Sawhney spent a year in India and noticed his neighbour, Divya, routinely washing clothes by hand, he realised how much time this task was taking people across India and other parts of the world. He returned home to the UK to found the Washing Machine Project with a mission to make washing clothes by hand much easier and quicker.
The first prototype Divya washing machine was created in 2019 from a repurposed chemical drum. After gathering extensive user feedback, a second iteration of the machine was developed in 2021, this time made largely from plastic, with a wooden stand. This proved to be cumbersome to deliver to remote communities and the wooden frame was prone to warping and breaking, so Sawhney and his team returned to the drawing board.
Watch to find out more about steel’s involvement in the Washing Machine Project and the Divya washing machine.
Steel provides the durability and versatility needed for the flat-pack Divya washing machine
After three years of research and development, the Divya 1.65 was born, designed to be easy to build from a flat-pack, simple to use, and with the capacity for a whole family’s washing. This version is made largely from steel, chosen because it is relatively light, durable enough to withstand years of regular use in demanding environments, easy to repair using locally available parts and a spanner and an Allen key, and sustainable. Each machine contains around 18.7 kg of stainless steel and 4.5 kg of mild steel, with steel forming the structural frame and the majority of the machine’s core components.
With its robust steel frame and corrosion-resistant materials, the Divya washing machine is designed to last at least ten years. At the end of its useful life, it can be easily dismantled so that its steel materials can be separated, repurposed or recycled.
Reducing the load for thousands
Hundreds of these steel Divya washing machines have now been distributed to households and communities around the world. It has made lives easier for over 100,000 people, largely women and children, giving them more time to spend in education, work and with their families and friends.