[February 20, 2019] |
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Arrow Electronics and We Care Solar Win 2019 Edison Award for Innovative Solar Suitcase Technology
Arrow Electronics (News - Alert) and nonprofit We
Care Solar have won a 2019 Edison
Award for We Care Solar Suitcase 3.0, a portable and durable power
system that provides sustainable energy for around-the-clock, effective
obstetric care in remote and off-grid maternal health facilities around
the world.
The Edison Awards, named after Thomas Alva Edison, recognizes and honors
the world's best innovators and innovations.
Worldwide, more than one billion people live without electricity - and
300,000 women die in childbirth, often turned away from health centers
that lack power.
We Care Solar is a nonprofit that has teamed with Arrow to ensure women
have access to safe childbirth in well-lit health facilities and equip
medical providers with the power to save lives.
Arrow offered to help improve the Solar Suitcase, a sun-powered,
waterproof, compact system that includes medical-quality lighting, a
fetal monitor, rechargeable headlamps, and cell phone charging for
remote health workers to make emergency referrals.
To optimize We Care Solar's lifesaving technology solution, Arrow helpe
create a lower cost, more powerful design that is now easier to
manufacture at scale, install and operate. Each unit is expected to work
for at least five years before requiring a simple battery replacement.
Extensive field testing is continuing in Uganda, and expanded
manufacturing in the United States is planned for 2019.
"Having the light changed the lives of the health workers and the
patients. It changed everything," said Maimuna Muye, a Nigerian midwife.
All nominations were reviewed by the Edison Awards Steering Committee
and the final ballot sent to an independent judging panel. The judging
panel was comprised of more than 3,000 professionals from the fields of
product development, design, engineering, science, marketing and
education, including professional organizations representing a wide
variety of industries and disciplines.
The Edison Awards will announce gold, silver and bronze award winners at
the Edison Awards Gala on April 4 in New York.
About Arrow Electronics
Arrow Electronics (NYSE:ARW) guides innovation forward for over 200,000
leading technology manufacturers and service providers. With 2018 sales
of $30 billion, Arrow develops technology solutions that improve
business and daily life. Learn more at fiveyearsout.com.
About We Care Solar
We Care Solar is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization that promotes safe
motherhood and reduces maternal mortality in developing regions by
providing health workers with reliable lighting, mobile communication,
and medical devices using solar electricity. We Care Solar has equipped
3,500 health centers and emergency response teams in 27 countries with
Solar Suitcases, serving 1.8 million mothers and their infants. Learn
more at www.wecaresolar.org.
About Edison Awards
Established in 1987, the Edison Awards is a program conducted by Edison
Universe, a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization dedicated to fostering
future innovators. For more information about the Edison Awards, please
visit www.edisonawards.com
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190220006012/en/
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