Odor Removing Toilet System (Odorless Toilet System)

Country: Korea, South

Organization: Ventex Ceramics Co., Ltd

Field of Work - Hygiene

Year the initative began (yyyy) - 1994

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Project URL: http://www.ventextoilet.com

Positioning in the Mosaic of solutions

Main barrier addressed: Public information alone doesn’t change behaviors
Main insight addressed: Connect solutions to the housing & finance sectors

What is your signature innovation, your new idea, in one sentence? - Odor removing from the toilet is essential for your health beside take smells out from inside of the toilet bowl by using an exhaust fan.

Describe your innovation. What makes your idea unique and different than others doing work in the field? - It is an odor removing toilet system that just may change your life. Calling it the "greatest innovation in bathrooms since the invention of the flush toilet", we have developed a system that draws unpleasant bathrooms odors through the toilet, venting them outside of the building.

We think now that most of toilets should be shifted to this odor removing toilet from the conventional ones. Odor removing toilet is more eco-frendly environmental one than others which is not affordable to eliminate virus, bateria and bad smells.

The toilet, which looks no different on the outside feature from conventional ones uses a single channel both to remove unpleasant bathroom odors and to provide fresh tank water for flushing.

The toilet system keeps bathroom air fresh at all times, while also lowering noise levels and offering significant energy savings over conventional ceiling fan systems.

The toilet system has received all necessary approvals from the health department, chief plumbing inspector and electrical inspector. We received CSA and IAPMO certificates already.

Delivery Model: How do you implement your innovation and apply it to the challenge/problem you are addressing? - One of the plumbing's great evolutionary leaps was when bathrooms moved indoors during the late 19th Century.
It created comport and convenienct lives, but it also brought inevitable odor intrusion and germ invasion.
Media headlines around the world are pointing to an alarming increase in any bateria or virus attacking patients in bathrooms.
Each year approx. 2 million patients are deaths by some water-borne diseases from unsafe drinking water sources according to an WHO's report.
The revolutionary odor removing system is an essential solution.

How do you plan to expand your innovation? - The international toilet symposiums are talked about "The culture of the toilet", "How to improve the environment in the bathrooms" and "Practical means to eliminate bad smells in Public Toilets" etc.
But still very little has been progressed.

Not often can a product do so many good things at the same time.
Some day most toilets will suck air from the bowl.
The value is in the venting system!

In November 2007, 'World Toilet Association(WTA)' is founded with the theme “Toilet Revolution, Changing the World”. From the 66 countries, ministerial level government officials responsible for health and sanitation, international organizations, businesses, civic groups and academic institutions have gathered in Seoul, Korea.

The company will co-work with WTA from 2008. WTA will help to enhance the toilet facilities for 5 countries in 2008 with a budget 1.1 million U.S. dollors.
Our business is introducing to U.S.A, Canada, Korea, Mongolia, China and so on.
We will expand the networking to each countries.
We have been already installed more than 20,000 sets of the toilets around the world.

Do you have any existing partnerships, and if so, how do you create them? - What type of partnerships to do need? According to the World Health Organization, 2.6 billion people or 40 percent of the world’s population are lack of access to proper sanitary toilet facilities.
We have partnership with WTA as for donation of USD5.00 per set distribute wherever in the world. We will start this program from January 2008.
This fund will be used for installation of the sanitary wares to some poor countries from 2008.
Our company became a board of directorship members for WTA.
We will contribute to help WTA's programs.

Our system is already proven by the International Association Plumbing and Mechanical Officials(IAPMO), issued with the IAPMO IGC 45-2006, Odor Removing Toilet with Ventilation Fan System.

Our System is patented several countries like Canada, U.S.A and Korea etc.

We want to participate any good programs further as long as it is good for human beings' healthier life.

Provide one sentence describing your impact/intended impact. - The toilet system removes malodor(max. 100%), virus, bacterias, saves a heat energy (max. 83%), saves the water(max. 50%) and reduces a noise of ceiling fan.

What are the main barriers to creating or achieving your impact? This field has not been completed

How many people have you served or plan to serve? - We are expanding the business networks worldwidely.

Directly: The businesses are doing in Canada, U.S.A, Korea, Mongolia at the moment.
In near future China, Philippine and Vietnam will be started the business.
They are all independent companies, but share the same information and products.
Indirectly: Four major sanitary wares manufacturers in Korea, one in U.S.A. and two companies in China are producing the odor removing toilets for us.
A total production capabilities are more than one million pieces of toilet a year.
We are cooperate together because our system could use their models and designs without change itself. We simply add the air exhaust channel inside the water tank, then the system works.

Please list any other measures of the impact of your innovation? - The system will be developed with two steps.
First, the virus and baterias are to kill with a device at the air channel before exit to the out side the building.
Second, the specific element data is to collect from the olfactory receptors which is to setting at the air channel, storage to a home computer server and send the data to the designated doctor. Then, the doctor may diagnose from the data.

Is there a policy intervention element to your innovation, if so please describe? N/A

Exactly who are the beneficiaries of your innovation? - All human beings must have a beneficial from the revolutionary odor removing toilet system.

How is your initiative financed (or how do you expect your initiative will be financed)? - We've sustained spending private financings.

Provide information on your finances and organization: - Current Annual budget (2007 fiscal year)?
Annual budget for the past 1-2 years (2006 and 2005)?
Annual revenue generated?
What are your current sources and/or streams of revenue?
Do you currently have sources of earned income (examples?); If not, why? We've been financed from the federal department of Western Economic Diversification in B.C. Canada.
We are now sorcing income mostly from the commercial construction companies or distributorship through the networks all over the world. We are not enough yet, but we expect some increasing revenues near future.

What is the potential demand for your innovation? - How do you estimate this demand?
Number of staff (full-time, part-time, volunteers): We think that a new concept of invention must be introduced to the people, so old ones can replace to a more good ones.

What are the main barriers to financial sustainability? - N/A

What is the origin of this innovation? Tell us your story. - Mr. Henry Martens from Abbotford B.C. Canada is invented the system in 1993 as got patented in U.S.A and Canada first. He is the sole owner of U.S. Patent No. 4,989,276 and Canadian Patent No. 1,319,465.

Former owner of local Delmont and Pro-Am photo stdios, Martens has been thinking on the idea of an odor removing toilet for 15 years, but has spent 5 years working on it consistently and finally completed the system.

Years of engineering refinment have gone into innovative development.
The Ventex System has no more moving parts than a conventional toilet, so mechanical problems are virtually eliminated.

Please provide a personal bio. Note this may be used in Changemakers marketing material - I'm a chairman of the Ventex Ceramics Co., Ltd. Also I'm serving for WTA as a board of director.
I have the exclusive marketing right for Ventex odor removing system to anywhere in the world.

Contact Information:

Peter J.W. Son
Chairman
Ventex Ceramics Co., Ltd
(Business)

Submitted by: Peter J.W. Son

Discussions about this entry

question--thank you

by water washer on February 21, 2008 - 21:17

Hello Peter,

I am currently working on a problem where there are really bad odors with toilets that are deep inside of mines. It is not possible to "vent" the odors there...at least I don't think it is.

Can you advise your thoughts please?

Thanks,
Brian

I can give you an advice

by Peter J.W. Son on February 22, 2008 - 02:52

Dear Brain,

Technically, there is no problem.
If you change the toilet to an odor removing toilet, then the system will work even in the deep inside of mines.
I can give you an advice if you send me a sketch dwgs of the cuurent mine situation.
please send it to my email to peter.son@ventextoilet.com

Best regards,

Peter

Peter, I am curious about

by danafrasz on February 11, 2008 - 12:54

Peter,
I am curious about who the primary audience is for this technology and what the actual social impact is. I agree with Jerry that it seems like an innovation for those that already have sanitation.

In terms of logistics - How are these toilets being serviced? Who are your customers? How is it financed?
Lastly, perhaps you would be interested in the Women's Only Eco-Sanitation entry: http://changemakers.net/en-us/node/5488 You two might be able to connect.

Dana Frasz
Changemakers

The odorless Toilet is not for the high end users only.

by Peter J.W. Son on February 13, 2008 - 03:53

Dear Dana,

This invention is for all human beings, not for only the people of riches.
All human beings are right to have a proper facilities.
Thanks for your comments.
We also try to find some meaningful projects from all over the world. ^^

Peter Son
South Korea

Intended for whom?

by Jerry on January 31, 2008 - 16:39

The George Washington University, current graduate student

An interesting idea overall. However, I must admit I had a difficult time reading it because of the grammar issues.

Who is this invention intended for? It seems like it would be nice for individuals in the first world, but would it be appropriate for others?

Change is relentless.

by Peter J.W. Son on February 13, 2008 - 04:05

Dear Jerry,

I'm sorry to reply you so late.
Please understand that English is not my native lauange.^^

This invention is for all human beings.
Anybody can use it. It's not very expensive items.
Years of engineering refinement have gone into innovative development with very simple.
New products and services replace old ones and often make them obsolete.

Thanks,

Peter
Korea, South

Thanks Peter, thanks for all

by Barry Jeenmaz on September 14, 2008 - 22:58

Thanks Peter, thanks for all your hard work and be assured he didn't mean to be rude (about the grammar error comment), he was just curious as to who the product was directed at.

Keep up the good work!
-Barry

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Name - Barry Jeenmaz
Email - torreno.programmer[at]gmail.com
AIM - labtested1980
Yahoo - blowerping
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