Winrock International and U.S. EPA Training Opportunity: Assessing Cookstove Performance in the Field, 2nd Call for Applications

Is your stove project ready to conduct the Controlled Cooking Test (CCT) or Kitchen Performance Test (KPT) to quantify the fuel use of your stove in the field? The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and Winrock International (Winrock) are pleased to announce this second call for applications in our series of field stove performance training and testing opportunities. In 2012, the USEPA and Winrock, through contracts with Aprovecho Research Center and Berkeley Air Monitoring Group, conducted stove performance testing trainings and field studies with cookstove organizations in Uganda (KPT) and Vietnam (CCT). In 2013, we anticipate providing support for 3-4 additional organizations to conduct either the CCT or KPT to evaluate the field performance of their stove.

This current initiative builds on USEPA’s evaluation of stove performance in the laboratory and previous field testing in Nepal, India, Peru, Rwanda, Laos and Bangladesh. You can learn more about these past efforts at www.PCIAonline.org/proceedings. The primary objective of this capacity building initiative is to help cookstove organizations obtain field data on fuel use to inform and improve stove design, performance and use. In some cases, we will also assess emissions, including both health and climate-related pollutants.

Through this initiative, cookstove organizations will be selected to host a 3-4 day stove testing workshop, facilitated by USEPA and Winrock, with technical training provided by Aprovecho and Berkeley Air, in which several local organizations will be invited to participate. Upon completion of the workshop, the selected organization will then receive extended technical support for an in-depth field study to quantify their stove’s fuel use in the field and gain the skills to evaluate new designs in the future. This round of CCT and KPT trainings/field studies is expected to take place between May - September 2013.

Controlled Cooking Test

The CCT is a field test that measures stove performance in comparison to traditional cooking methods when a cook prepares a local meal. The CCT is designed to assess stove performance in a controlled setting using local fuels, pots, and practices. It reveals what is possible in households under controlled conditions, but not necessarily what is actually achieved by households during daily use.

The CCT training will be conducted by Aprovecho Research Center in a very interactive and collaborative manner involving presentations, discussions, hands-on stove design modification and testing, data analysis exercises, and qualitative/survey exercises with cooks and stoves in the field.

The Aprovecho team will continue to provide technical assistance to the selected organization after the training and field study by e-mail, telephone and Skype. By the end of the technical assistance phase, the selected organization will have the capacity to conduct stove performance testing, perform the necessary data analysis, and make design modifications which improve their stove’s performance, safety, and durability.

The following is a sample CCT work plan, which will be updated and finalized with the selected organization:

  • Step 1: Training to conduct CCT
  • Step 2: Conduct CCT
  • Step 3: Stove design review and modifications
  • Step 4: Training and support to conduct further testing, analyze data and write report

Kitchen Performance Test

The KPT is a field test designed to measure daily household fuel consumption in real-world settings. The support provided by this stove performance field testing study may also assist the selected organization in producing fuel consumption estimates for application for carbon offsets, including CDM, Gold Standard, and other methodologies.

The KPT training will be conducted by Berkeley Air Monitoring Group in a very interactive and collaborative manner. Trainings will involve presentations, discussions, quantitative exercises (in Microsoft Excel), qualitative/survey exercises, role playing, and practice visits to households that are not part of the KPT sample.

If requested by the selected organization, Berkeley Air will provide guidance in selecting a qualified KPT field team, from within or outside of the organization, who will participate in the training. The KPT field team should include one field supervisor from the selected organization and several field surveyors. The field supervisor will be the primary contact with the Berkeley Air team throughout the project.

Berkeley Air and the field team will complete a Kitchen Performance Test with a sample size of approximately 40 to 60 households over the course of about 15 working days. The Berkeley Air lead trainer will remain with the selected organization through the completion of the KPT field effort. Berkeley Air will provide the organization with calibrated, high-accuracy, digital weighing scales and certified weights (for daily calibration) for use in the KPT. Working with the organization’s field supervisor, the lead trainer will oversee KPT data collection, entry, analysis, and management during the field visit.

The following is a sample KPT work plan, which will be updated and finalized with the selected organization:

  • Step 1: Household selection (coordinated in advance by selected organization, with support from Berkeley Air)
  • Step 2: Training to conduct KPT
  • Step 3: Perform baseline (traditional scenario) fuel use measurements
  • Step 4: Perform project (new stove scenario) fuel use measurements
  • Step 5: Training and support to analyze data and write report

The Berkeley Air team will continue to provide technical assistance to the selected organization after the field visit. Their team will remain in contact with the selected organization’s Field Supervisor via telephone, Skype, email, and possibly in-person meetings. The technical assistance will continue at least until a final report or article is completed. By the end of the technical assistance phase, the organization will have the capacity to lead a KPT field effort, perform the necessary data analysis, and write a final report.

You can download the stove test protocols at www.pciaonline.org/testing.

Selection criteria:

  • Applicant must be a Partner of the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves. To join, please visit http://community.cleancookstoves.org/registration.
  • Applicant has quantified stove performance under controlled conditions as demonstrated by providing the results of the Water Boiling Test (WBT) or comparable test, along with test details including the testing organization, the number of tests/replicates, and other test conditions. The quality and extent of the WBT test results will be a part of the selection criteria. Submission of additional information on stove performance and usage is advised and may include the following:
    • Controlled Cooking Test Results
    • Pilot fuel consumption estimates
    • Other performance tests
  • Applicant can demonstrate successful community acceptance or adoption of stoves. Please provide:
    • Current estimate of successfully adopted stoves
    • Results from stove usage/acceptance surveys and questionnaires
    • Description of stove user training (e.g., user instructions, product guarantees, follow-up procedures)
  • Applicant can demonstrate a high quality manufacturing process in which each stove produced meets design specifications. Please fully describe the stove’s technical specifications (including materials, parts, dimensions, etc.), the manufacturing process, and quality control and assurance procedures. Please provide pictures of the stove as well.
  • Applicant has sufficient staff and financial resources to implement the testing plan (see below), and sufficient computer and language skills to fully participate in the training. Please provide a capacity statement describing staff (including information on computing skills and English proficiency), infrastructure, and major funding sources.
  • Preference will be given to those applicants who have participated in past Partnership for Clean Indoor Air (PCIA) activities, including: submission of 2011 PCIA results report, participation in PCIA Forums and events, and submission of content for the PCIA Bulletin.

Bonus Criteria: Special consideration will be given to applicants who propose to partner with a Regional Stove Testing Center (see list at http://pciaonline.org/testing/stove-testing-centers), University or other organization who exhibits the potential to use the knowledge gained from this consultancy to conduct future field studies in the region.

To join, please visit http://community.cleancookstoves.org/registration.

Contact Information
Background Information
Stove Promotion and Testing

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Stove Acceptance/Adoption

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Agreements and Requirements

USEPA will pay for all costs associated with the training and technical assistance provided by Berkeley Air Monitoring Group or Aprovecho Research Center, including their time, travel, per diem, and monitoring equipment.

Winrock International will pay for working lunch and refreshment costs, translation costs (if required) and any venue and materials costs for the workshop. The selected organizations will be responsible for helping Winrock International to organize a 3-4 day training workshop for other local organizations, led by Berkeley Air Monitoring Group or Aprovecho Research Center. The selected organizations will help Winrock identify a nearby low-cost workshop venue, participant lodging options, and arrange lunch and morning/afternoon refreshments for the participants, who will otherwise cover their own costs, including lodging.

The selected organizations will be responsible for all costs associated with their staff participation in the training and the implementation of the CCT or KPT field study, including salaries, per diem, lodging, telecommunications, local transportation for the entire field team, and translation to/from English if required during the field study. The selected organizations will need computers with Microsoft Excel and Word.

The training will be conducted in English with translation to other languages as necessary, determined on a case by case basis. The selected organizations are responsible for ensuring the English proficiency of the participants and/or identifying an experienced, skilled local translator for the workshop, and hiring and paying for an experienced, skilled local translator for the field study if needed. Given the technical nature of the training and field study, this is a critical factor for success.

Results of the Controlled Cooking and Kitchen Performance Tests performed under this agreement will be published in peer-reviewed journals and through USEPA communication channels such as webinars and written reports.

Applications must be received by March 1st. Applicants are encouraged to submit their applications early to increase their likelihood of being selected. Winrock and USEPA reserve the right to close the application process before March 1st if sufficient qualifying applications are received before that date. All applications must be submitted online. Please contact us at
moderator@cookstovesandindoorair.org with any questions.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I understand that if my organization is selected to participate in the field testing we will be responsible for the costs and logistics coordination described above. I also agree that USEPA will publish the results of the tests performed under this agreement in peer reviewed journals and other communication channels such as webinars and written reports.