Man gets int'l patent for pump

Man gets int'l patent for pump

KUPANG, East Nusa Tenggara (JP): A retired elementary school
teacher in Sika, Flores, has received international acclaim for
his water pump, an invention now registered at The Hague patent
office.

Saverius Nurak 61, described his invention as a product that
resulted from a combination of natural challenges and artistic
innovation.

His birthplace, Nitaboleng village, is the only area in Sika
where clean water is hard to obtain.

An artist by heart and a school teacher by training, Nurak
said he gave up the latter to devote his full attention to
sculpting and song writing.

"Then, I tried to design a water pump that would surmount deep
ravines and hills."

He said he first drafted the design of his water pump in 1986.
A year later he began collecting scraps of iron to build the
pump.

"The villagers were astonished that the machine was able to
pump water despite a declivity of 60 degrees and elevation of 270
meters," Nurak said as quoted by Antara.

Friends urged him to register his invention at the Jakarta
patent office, where he was told to get an international patent
in The Hague.

A South Korean company has subsequently offered to buy the
patented device, called S Nurak's Pump, for Rp 3.5 billion.

But Nurak said he was reluctant to sell the patent for less
than it was worth.

"I am looking for somebody willing to buy it for Rp 6 billion
or 7 billion." (mds)