TYPE OF BUSINESS VENTURE

Water Refilling Station

ANALYZE INDUSTRY
The demand at the water refilling stations – water stores that sell purified water – is now
increasing. The quality of purified water conforms to the national standards for drinking water and
is even better than the quality of water produced by traditional water supply systems in terms of
removed impurities.

Over the years, as the demand for cleaner water becomes higher, the price of household
water purifiers and bottled water has become prohibitive. Water refilling stations managed by
private entrepreneurs offer a cheaper and more convenient solution to the public’s drinking water
needs than bottled water or the use of household filters.

In the Philippines, bottled water has established a major foothold. In some places, piped-
water systems are lacking; in others, people are uncertain about
biological contaminants, disinfection by-products from the chlorination process, taste, and odor.

Even in the capital Manila, only about three fourths of the population receives piped water
from the municipal authority. Outside Manila far fewer people have access to clean water
distribution. In both locations, these families must find alternate water sources if they are to
avoid cholera epidemics and other health problems spawned by the foul, contaminated water
available in their neighborhoods.

A solution has appeared in the thousands of water refilling stations that now dot the
Philippine landscape. These shops began as privately-run community sources, where consumers
would bring containers and fill them for a per-gallon fee that is a small fraction of commercially
bottled water’s cost. Demand is such that most stores now offer home delivery for regular
customers.

Features of a water refilling station

Structurally, water refilling station can be operated with a minimum area of at least 20-25
square metres. It comprises the following sections: refilling and selling room, enclosed water
purification room, container washing and sanitizing room, storage room for empty and refilled
containers, source water storage facility, toilet and an office.
To operate the water store, about five employees are needed.

1 – Manager – Overseas store operations at least 4 hours a day

1 – Accountant/Bookkeeper – Makes financial statement of business operations
1 – Administrative assistant – Logs and handles cash sales and purchases
1 – Front Liner – Accepts and refills containers of customers
1 – Technical Asst. – Maintains and runs the machine
1 – Driver/Delivery Man – Transport refilled containers to customer’s home

The main processes in a water refilling station is dictated by raw water quality. The typical
steps are filtration (several stages), softening, and disinfection. The machines that could be
installed for such processes are the following:

Multi-media sediment filter – removes sediments such as rust, sand and particles that are
invisible to the naked eye; employs a total of 5 filters.

Ion exchanger – replaces hard minerals with soft minerals.

Activated carbon filter – removes all organic chemicals, herbicide, pesticide, offensive odor
and bad taste.

Reverse osmosis membrane – the heart of the system and the most expensive unit; removes
inorganic minerals, bacteria and viruses while retaining its oxygen content. Since the filter size
is very small at less than 0.05 micrometre, the product water could have a total dissolved solids
(TDS) of less than 10 ppm. The filtration process rejects about 50 percent of raw water volume.

Post-carbon filter – improves the taste of water.

Ultraviolet lamp – ensures that the water is free from disease-causing micro-organisms.

Ozone generator – inhibits the growth of bacteria in the product tank and prolongs the shelf life
of water.
FINANCIAL REQUIREMENT

While the capital requirement of a water refilling station is not that expensive, it would cost
around P500,000 to get started. Still, it is possible to start at P200,000 for the most basic setup.
However, it may also turn out that you may need around P1 million if it is in a prime location, is in
need of expensive renovation, or, if demand is great, it needs higher capacity equipment. There
are many other factors affecting capitalization, like the type of delivery vehicle and water station
equipment you will be acquiring.

DETERMINE IF VIABLE

MARKETING PLAN

END RESULTS/RETURN OF INVESTMENT

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