Engineering Used for Great Cause

Air-con from plastic bottles, no electricity needed

A breath of fresh air Cheap air-con units, developed by Grey Dhaka using bottles and cold drink cans, have been installed in homes in Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, most of the population still resides in rural areas where access to electricity is limited. More than 70% of the country’s citizens live in corrugated tin houses, which amplify the sun’s heat. During summer, temperatures can get as high as 45°C.

Grey Dhaka, the Bangladesh unit of US-based multinational advertising and marketing agency Grey Group, has developed an ingenious way to tackle the sweltering conditions for those living in impoverished areas in the country.

The agency has introduced the Eco-Cooler, the world’s first “zero electricity” air conditioner.

Made out of repurposed plastic bottles or cold drink cans, the Eco-Cooler is cost-effective, environmentally friendly and simple to make.

Repurposed plastic bottles are cut in half and mounted onto a board or a grid with the bottlenecks facing the inside of the house, and this board is then installed onto a window.

Hot air enters the open end of the bottle and is compressed at the neck of the bottle, turning the air cooler before it reaches the inside of the house. The Eco-Cooler can reduce the temperature by as much as 5°C.

In collaboration with Grameen Intel Social Business, Grey Dhaka distributed Eco-Cooler units for free in villages across the country.

Today, more than 25 000 households have an Eco-Cooler in their homes in Bangladesh.

The innovation has brought relief to thousands of people, whose lives are now a little more comfortable thanks to this simple device.