Aceh Post-Disaster: ITB-Paragon Deliver Water Filter to Aceh Tamiang
Aceh Post-Disaster: ITB-Paragon Deliver Water Filter to Aceh Tamiang
Aceh post-disaster: Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) in collaboration with Paragon Corp has again assisted communities by delivering the second clean-water filtration technology to residents in Aceh Tamiang on Saturday, 7 March. This programme was implemented through ITB’s collaboration with the Directorate of Community Service and Expertise Services (DPMK) ITB with Paragon providing sponsorship. The water filter was installed in Sukajadi Village, Karang Baru District, Aceh Tamiang, precisely on the banks of the Tamiang River, which serves as the water source for the filtration system.
In the handover ceremony, Paragon was represented by Dwi Eliani, while ITB was represented by the Director of Communications and Public Relations, N. Nurlaela Arief, and the handover was received by Armia Fahmi, the Regent of Aceh Tamiang. The technology operates by drawing water from the river, which is initially turbid, and processing it through two filtration stages to produce clear water fit for use and even safe for drinking. The filtered water is then collected in a large-capacity storage tank before distribution to residents. From the storage, the water is piped to water tanks around households in Sukajadi Village. Through this distribution system, around 1,200 residents can now access clean water for bathing, washing, sanitation, and drinking. Some residents also come directly to the filtration site to collect water.
During the fasting month, particularly in the late afternoon, residents queue up with empty containers to fill clean water from the ITB–Paragon filtration system. The filtration system has a maximum capacity of up to 7,200 litres per hour, enabling a large supply of clean water for the surrounding community. The water filter was shipped from Bandung to Aceh Tamiang, taking around a week to arrive at the site, and forms part of ongoing recovery efforts in Aceh, supporting residents’ basic needs for clean water.
Armia Fahmi, the Regent of Aceh Tamiang, thanked ITB and Paragon, noting that with government and broader support conditions should recover more quickly and that he is pursuing further collaboration with ITB.
EXPERIENCE OF LOCAL RESIDENTS
ITB Director of Communications and Public Relations, N. Nurlaela Arief, explained that the technology also brings human-interest stories from the local community. One story concerns a baby who had diarrhoea for nearly a month despite treatment; after families began using water from the filtration system, the baby’s condition reportedly improved and healed. “This collaboration demonstrates how synergy between higher education and the industrial sector can deliver technological solutions with real benefits for communities. In future, more companies are expected to collaborate with ITB to deliver similar innovations, given that water-filtering technology is much needed by residents in Aceh Tamiang,” he said.
The Mobile Water Treatment Plant (IPA Mobile) or clean-water filtration technology is ITB’s contribution, involving ITB Rector, Tatacipta Dirgantara, Head of the Mobile IPA Team Bagus Budiwantoro from the Department of Engineering and Production Design, Faculty of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (FTMD ITB), the ITB LAPI Foundation, and various ITB internal partners. (E-2)