The Carmelite Missionary Sisters have a health center in the former leprosarium of Dibamba, in the city of Douala (Cameroon), where they have developed a 3D printing project of prosthetics for the vulnerable population they serve. This project has been carried out in conjunction with the Polytechnic University of Valencia, the Barceló Foundation and the Religious for Health Foundation.

After the success of the first tests, the prosthetics center encountered an unexpected problem: the 3D printing of each piece can take up to 60 hours of continuous work, but due to the high instability of the electrical network in the area, the printing could be interrupted several times. If this happens, the different layers of filament do not have adequate adhesion and the piece breaks.

• NGO: Carmelite Missionary Sisters
• Service: 24/7 electricity and light for the workshops and 3D printers
• Impact: Continuous electrical service for the production of prosthetics
• PV Instalation: 20 panels (9 kWp) and lithium batteries (30 kWh)
• Social Impact: reliable supply of prostheses to patients

In this context, Sister Pascale Nicolas contacted EKI to study the possibility of installing a solar photovoltaic system that would guarantee a continuous electrical supply and allow a safe and constant production of prosthetics. This project was one of the first that EKI has carried out through collaborating entities; in this case, the installation was carried out by the company EFORA.