(p)repair Manifesto

Introduction

The purpose of this manifesto is to give you the keys to our project (p)repair. What problem do we want to tackle? How do we achieve this? Why do we do this? You should find the answers to these questions in the following pages. And if you have any other questions, please let us know, by simply writing to us at: team@p-repair.org

Happy reading!

1/ The Maintenance: Knight in the Service of the Good

Troubles

According to ADEME (a french governemental Agence for the ecological transition), and the Fnac-Darty (a huge french retailer) after-sales service, more than 50% of failures on our domestic appliances are related to a lack of maintenance ¹, ². Who cares, you say? Not that much, for two reasons: it costs us a lot, and it kills the planet (you start to know the tune normally).

Roughly, 50% of avoidable panes corresponds to 14 million household appliances per year in France.

That is considerable.

We have a real card to play to reduce the externalities generated by the majority of devices we use, by extending their lifespan ³, ⁴, ⁵.

An ADEME infographic ⁶ indicates, for example:

If the entire fleet of washing machines, dishwashers and dryers in France were to be extended by one year, the gains would be 860,000 tonnes of CO²-eq, equivalent to the energy imperfect of 1.6 million households over one year.

Another infographic ⁷ points to savings:

Extending the use of its equipment by 1 year rather than replacing it with new equipment would save €660.

The Testament

So to pollute less is mathematical: you have to produce less. And to produce less, it’s simple, we have to apply the 7 R. These are rules that make sense:

• buy only what we really need (refuse, reduce)
• keep as long as possible what we own (repair, reuse), reinvent our lifestyle
• properly sort our waste (recycle)
• affirm our vision (revendicate)

Too much responsibility all this?

Frankly, with a little motivation (saving the world is not bad, right?), we can do it!

And it’s good for morale to know that we are improving individually and collectively!

But in these rules of life, new will of zero waste, there may be a missing r: rmaitain. Because once again, according to our sources of confidence mentioned in Troubles, we could theoretically avoid a bundle of millions of breakdowns on household appliances every year, in France, with a good return is generalized. It’s not nothing, what do you say?

It’s all well and good, but how do you maintain it? We are not all pros after all, and what we want is to buy a device, plug it in, it works, consumes little, lasts long, and voila!

Maintenance Examples

It deserves some examples to illustrate.

A dryer filter: nothing more conventional. It must be cleaned after each use. But over time, the filter eventually wears out and becomes more watertight. Imagine running with a mask on your mouth. It will be the same for the engine of your device. The maintenance is then to clean it after each use, and to change it when it begins to become too tight.

The brewing unit for coffee-grinders: to make your coffee taste as good as ever, you need to change a joint from time to time. You can even put this part in the dishwasher to clean it when necessary, then reinstall it by adding a little food grease if necessary!

The motors coals: these are parts that ensure the electrical supply of the motor, by making contact with the rotor (that’s it speaks technique). Basically these parts undergo mechanical wear over time. They are present in the vast majority of our electric motors (from the washing machine to the drill). When worn, the coals shrink. After a while, it is possible that the current passes less well, but especially, from a certain stage of wear, it will eventually damage the rotor (another part of your electric motor, much more expensive and difficult to replace). This may make you think the device is down. While changing the motor coals is often a simple maintenance operation, which requires only a screwdriver, and the spare part rarely exceeds 20€. The main thing is to know how to change these parts in time, to avoid damaging the engine of your device!

Finally, let’s start with the simple: when was the last time you launched your empty washing machine on a high-temperature program (at least 60°C), with vinegar in the drum, to clean up the mess? Perhaps it is recent, congratulations!

The french ADEME “Épargnons nos ressources” website is full of good maintenance tips ⁸. As well as a large number of online forums.

Laziness

So okay, sometimes we’re lazy. We’re just humans after all, it’s nice to recognize that. And our appliances are clearly not the sexiest thing in life. We often have much better things to do: see our friends, family, cook a good meal, have a good drink, watch a series, stretch under the duvet, walk in the forest… I am in!

Sexy ?

But thinking about it: isn’t it a little sexy, to take out a few screwdrivers, a wrench, and stick to a small check of the engines coals, a small cleaning of a filter, a small lubrication of a piston? It already has the merit of making you a mixture of Angus MacGyver ⁹ and Imperator Furiosa ¹⁰.

Here are some of your future skills:

• you will be less dumb-dumb to the machines around you 🧠
• you will be better equipped with transversal skills to survive the end of the world 🦾🔧
• you can pass on your knowledge to others 🧡
• you will participate in delaying the end of the world ❤️‍🔥
• by then, you will save money 💶
• you will advance science 🧪

And above all, it is estimated that very little time will be needed to manage your machines. Either they manage you or you manage them. It’s up to you. We have the opportunity to become true everyday hackers without making any real efforts. It may only happen once in our lives. Let us not let this opportunity pass.

2/ The Organization, the Nerve of the War

We expressed our enthusiasm for good maintenance.

Now, we will try to explain how we intend to attack the decline of our devices.

We’re going to go point by point. And at the end, you’ll see, when you tie it all together, that the idea is interesting.

Notifications

The cornerstone of our solution is a mobile app.

Why an umpteenth application in our smartphones?

Because it will allow to receive useful advice, directly in the pocket, to better understand our devices, and make them last a max. Because the longer it lasts, the better it is for the planet and the wallet!

We have seen some examples in the first part: keep filters clean, check seals and motor coals. Very often, it is very simple to properly maintain your device to avoid a breakdown. The problem is that even with the best will in the world, we forget. We forget to do it, because we already think of a lot of other information, and that rare are the small maintenance gestures on our agendas.

The principle of notifications is not to be bombarded every day with homework. It is on the contrary, to make sure to gather, once every 2 weeks perhaps, some advice on your devices. You may even be able to choose the day of the notifs. Sometimes it will just be information, nothing to do but read a few sentences to stay on top. Other times, you just have to ask yourself a moment to make a small check up by following our advice. This is how you will learn more, without feeling it, and how you will be able make devices to last longer, effortlessly.

And be careful, we will not call on just anyone to give you these maintenance tips: Till will come in person to explain what is good to do to manage the shape of your dishwasher, oven, dryer…

Mascot

But who is Till?

Till, he’s a dog. A crazy dog, with all the ardor and energy of youth, and infinite love to give. He is the mascot on the app, the one we see pointed at when it comes to learning a little more about the secret life of our machines. Till does not have his tongue in his pocket, he speaks frankly when it comes to unscrewing a cover to access the entrails of the devices!

Referencing

In order to pass on its knowledge, Till needs us. We need to reference the devices we own on the app. The idea is simple: I have an OVEN from the brand SONORA. The model name is CHOMAX. I go on the application (p)repair, and I inform that I have this product, on my user account. I then receive tailored advice for all products added to my collection.

Collaborative Design

The products I add to my collection don’t come out of nowhere. I own them physically. And they exist virtually in a database, which is what allows me to find them on the application.

The (p)repair database is not purchased from data providers. It is made up of all of us, users of the application. So when I can’t find a product on the app that I physically own, I can add it to the database. Then I can add it to my collection. So we’re all improving that common service.

“But how will Till know what advice to give me, for a product that I myself added to the base?” Well it’s simple: this product belongs to a category (an OVEN to use the previous example). The vast majority of ovens have similar maintenance procedures. I will receive these advices first. Then, since the application is collaborative, other knowledgeable members can add new tips, which will more specifically concern the model of my oven (CHOMAX, to use the previous example). Till is also working on the continuous improvement of the application, and is looking for partners (oven manufacturers, for example, or repairers) to add new advice as and when needed. He also searches the internet for best maintenance practices. But don’t worry: Till is a good guy, he makes sure that we are never overwhelmed with notifications, and chooses the ones that are really the smartest to save us time, money, and love for this world.

Statistics

Who says database says… statistics!

In addition to receiving notifications about the proper maintenance of our devices, we will have access to statistics on our collection. Some examples of statistics include:

• current lifetime for each of my products
• average lifetime for this product model
• average lifetime for this product category
• total cost of ownership (TCO) for each products

This will easily determine which product model is more or less resistant over time, and thus compare which are the best and the worst, with a little hindsight. It can give ideas about the reliability of a brand’s future products, for example.

It will also give indications on the most interesting products to buy.

Illustration

I have a budget of about 450 € to buy a new washing machine, because the previous one broke down after 6 years of loyal services. I am not very handyman, and the cost of repair is estimated at 190 €, including spare parts and labor. This cost being higher than 1/3 of the value of my new product, I decide, like the majority of the population, to renew for new. This purchase is motivated by: a failure, a repair cost considered too important, and finally, a slight pleasure related to the acquisition of new equipment.

In the store, several models oscillate around 450 €. I decide for a 479 € washing machine, which looks good, with a good energy label (consumption of electricity and water lower than its competitors). The washing machine I just bought has an average lifetime of 6 years, according to the data collected on the old models of this range, for this brand. I don’t know yet. Another model, from a brand recognized as more reliable and specialized in the higher ranges, is sold 1 199€, with an average lifetime of 18 years. I don’t know that either. Because if I had a tool allowing me to really compare to choose the cheapest product, I would have bought the second model, at 1 199 €, even if I had to split the payment.

Here is the Picture

The winner of the comparison is undeniably the second model. I would have saved 13.22 € per year on average, by deciding to buy the second model. Over a period of 18 years, this would save 13.22 x 18 = 237.96 €. If we follow this logic and multiply it by the number of household appliances we have, it is possible to achieve great savings thanks to smart choices!

The bottom line is that the cheapest at buying time is not always the cheapest over time.

To find the cheapest, the purchase price must be correlated with the lifetime of the product.

This reasoning purposely excluded ecology… for now.

Think about it now: over a period of 18 years, with model 1, we buy 3 washing machines, and we end up throwing them away. Over a period of 18 years, with model 2, we buy 1 washing machine, and we end up throwing it away. We would therefore have the possibility to reduce by 3 our waste, by choosing the model 2, and the raw materials necessary for the production of new washing machines.

After a quick analysis, Model 2 is:

• the cheapest
• the greenest

Sometimes, it may be good to renew your device before 20 years, if there is a technological leap that drastically reduces the energy consumption of new devices compared to old ones. This is more difficult to judge, it is often done on a case-by-case basis ³, ¹¹.

Therefore, we also intend to offer environmental statistics, to encourage us to make the best choices, given our primary motivation. We will be able to know how much CO² we have avoided by keeping our devices longer than average, how many tons of waste we have avoided, and many other worries for our beautiful planet Earth.

Additional Information

To access these statistics, we will be able to provide additional information for the products we own. For example: the purchase price, the warranty period.

It will always be convenient to have in the pocket the information that our device is still under warranty, if a failure happens.

It will also be convenient to see which product has significantly exceeded its average lifespan thanks to our good care, but which may eventually cause a new investment despite everything: we will be able to anticipate any expenses.

Data Treatment

In our vision, everyone decides on access to their non-personal information: I can then choose to make public or not the products of my collection.

Regarding personal data, they will never be sold to anyone.

All this will be legally well tied, so that we are all serene looking to the future.

The “Open Source” Model

We believe that what is good in the world should benefit as many people as possible.

Our main examples are: Wikipedia, Open Street Map, Open Food Facts, and more recently Team for the Planet.

The development of the internet now allows 5 billion humans to interact, and benefit from free resources. It is a phenomenal power for sharing.

Wikipedia is an encyclopedia that has democratized knowledge, in all fields, on a global scale ¹².

OpenStreetMap is a free map that allows you to locate yourself geographically, anywhere on the planet ¹³.

Open Food Facts wants to make food transparency a global standard. Applications like Yuka are based on this project ¹⁴.

Team for the Planet is a project that wants to finance and free innovations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions ¹⁵.

With (p)repair, we want to make product transparency a global standard.

Therefore, public information in our database (which does not concern user profiles) will be free of access for any structure wishing to benefit from it. Any improvements to this database will in turn have to be open access as well. And no organization can take the rights to use our data, to the detriment of others. This is called a «contaminant» free license, like the GNU general public license, for the curious ¹⁶.

The free model is defended in a UN report on extending the life of objects ³. It states:

The basic philosophy behind the “Open Source” perspective is that the lack of transparency (asymmetrical information between industry and consumers) is one of the causes of shorter product lives. If consumers have better information, they can, in theory, make better buying decisions. Open Source is therefore meant to enable and empower consumers to extend the lifetime of products. It follows that consumers are not only given more power, but also more responsibility. The success of this perspective will depend on consumers taking action, and being enabled and supported by relevant policy measures, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and industry initiatives.

Failure Tracking

Our project plans to reference not only the products, but also the breakdowns that occur on these products.

Why? Just to:

• record failures on a given product
• identify the most common failures
• allow the community to link documents (schemes, repair tutorials) to overcome these failures

So we’ll have even more interesting stats! Yes! The must in all of this: if 10 000 of us encounter a failure on a given product and no solution exists, anyone will have access to this information and can decide to undertake to offer a solution to these 10 000 users and potential customers. Some companies will be able to use (p)repair as pre-chewed market research to see where unsatisfied demand exists, and remedy it, for the sake of wallets and the planet!

Spare Parts

A failure = a potential repair, and we will do everything to facilitate this!

In more than 50 % of cases ¹⁷, a spare part will be needed to repair a broken product. We intend to reference the parts compatible with each product, so we will no longer need to search.

The information on spare parts will again provide statistics: between several compatible parts, is one more robust? Is one manufactured more responsibly? With better materials? Is it manufactured closer? Transparency on this information should avoid possible drifts towards new business models based on the repairability of a product, but with parts to change very regularly. In short, we want to know which products are the best (the cheapest, the most durable), but also which spare parts are the best, on these same criteria!

Networking

To further facilitate the civic and poetic act of repair, we will propose a direct relationship with the platforms expert in the distribution of spare parts, such as SOS Accessoires ¹⁸ or Spareka ¹⁹^

And if a failure does not have an existing solution due to lack of spare parts available, there again the community will be able to identify an unsatisfied demand (= a potential market), and anyone can embark on the production of a part, if legally and technically possible.

Each of us will also be able to debone old out-of-service devices to cannibalize parts, and offer them to other users in demand for those parts.

Summary

This chapter was a bit dense in information.

We are not going to do everything head-on, but move forward step by step in the development of our project.

Here is what our drawing looks like when we connect all the points:

→ In the short term, we will launch a mobile application to reference the household appliances we own, in order to receive notifications on their good maintenance. The idea: keep them alive longer. The database will be built by all of us in a collaborative way. We will also have access to statistics on our devices, which will feed our curiosity and serve research.

→ In the medium and long term, new functionalities will be deployed to extend the scope of transparency to spare parts. It will also be possible to reference failures, to stem them at best and promote the act of repair. We will manage the connection with distributors of spare parts but also professional repairers, for the biggest problems.

3/ Who Are We?

We are still at the beginning of this vast project, but we are determined to bring together as many people as possible to respond to the major issue we have identified. We want to put big slaps to the 14 million breakdowns per year (in France) that can be avoided with better maintenance. And in the long term, we want to move towards global product transparency.

At the time this manifesto is written, our team is composed of 2 people: Guillaume, full-time on the project for 1 year, and Jean-Philippe, part-time on the project. We are brothers.

Anyone wishing to provide support can contact us at team@p-repair.org so that we can discuss cooperation opportunities. The more of us, the further we will go in the battle we have chosen!

Why

Because we love life.

This is the main lever of our motivation.

We like to walk in the living nature. We like to observe the young buds and flowers to come. We like to bask in the shade of a majestic tree. We like to roam the mountains to see their breathtaking scenery. We love wildlife, which every species makes us dream of. We love music, we love colours. We love perfumes, we love the sky, the ocean, the stars! We love our place on Earth and in the Universe. It is above all to thank the life of its innumerable gifts that we wish to create something that seems useful to us for the common good, and for the preservation of life.

We all know that this is a delicate time, and that we must avoid relying on easy promises for the coming period. It is especially necessary to prepare concretely the soil that will perhaps see good news for tomorrow. We know it’s hard to build the future when we’re caught up in everyday life. Everyone has a lot to do in their lives. But when we think we can organize a more sustainable future, in order to preserve the best of our civilization, and to connect it more to our environment, let’s do it! Let’s try everything, whatever the cost, to thank life, when we are allowed!

4/ Our Values

Love

As we explained in our introduction, the ultimate goal of this project, the primary reason for its creation, is the love we have for life.

This love brings us strength to create a solution that is useful to the greatest number.

Dream

What would we be without a dream?

Dreams of the past have shaped today’s reality. Perhaps some selfish dreams may have led humanity to tragic hours. But how many dreams have made it possible to move forward in noble directions, to reduce fundamental inequalities, to extend human life expectancy, to advance our societies?

Today, more than ever, we must dream for the preservation of life. This is a recent concern for our specie. Now that we are aware of it, we need to imagine the most beautiful scenarios to build the world of tomorrow, based on current realities.

Action

Love and dreams can save a heart. But they do not participate in the march of the world without concrete action. We are determined enough in our convictions to take action. Action is the only way to realize a dream and spread love.

Only action can change the reality of the world.

What is the triangle of action?

This is the theory that each party must act according to its responsibilities, without relying on the other parts of the triangle to find solutions.

• State must act
• Companies must act
• Consumers must act

Our project is above all to create a framework, based on current technologies, to allow mass collective action. In the triangle of action, we are a company that acts to help consumers act.

5/ Our Mission

Our mission is simple: to help reduce the consumption of new products.

How do we intend to carry it out?

Sensitize and Train

Till, we saw it from the beginning, will make us super-users! We will become even sexier with our tools and new skills acquired without even noticing it! We will train regiments of everyday hackers, and the most talented or altruistic will help their loved ones to further multiply their impact. And if ever everything goes wrong, we will be well equipped with transversal skills to manage the 2-3 problems of the end of the world.

If a product fails on average after 5 years, we will make sure that it fails after 10 years! By the good maintenance and the better knowledge of our devices, we intend to fight to reduce consumption, without reducing our comfort of life!

Activate the Imaginary

Sobriety is increasingly present in our world. Or rather, it is taking its place in our countries. It is above all a matter of logic: one cannot with impunity take new resources without stopping, in a world where nothing is infinite.

We understood it. Now, it remains to make something stylish! And we think so: it is no less stylish to keep your washing machine for more than 20 years than to run the marathon in less than 3 hours! We intend to give their letters of nobility to users who know how to take care of their devices, and manufacturers concerned to design truly sustainable and energy-efficient products!

Statistics will be our allies to push motivation ever further, in the direction of sobriety and sustainability! Better to keep your money to celebrate and buy a nice bike, rather than spending it regularly for products that do not hold water! And it is better to maintain good products to avoid the worry of seeing a breakdown occur.

Facilitate Good Decisions

Reducing our consumption is above all consuming the right products: those that last and are energy efficient.

We also know that the products that last the longest are often not the cheapest to buy.

So you have to look at the total cost of ownership of a product, to compare the actual price, which is quite different from the purchase price. And we must add an environmental dimension: how many products of this type will I consume during my life if I choose this model? How much if I choose this other model?

Having data on hand, in your pocket, without having to look any further, makes it easier to make the right decisions. We are going to call that transparency and information. Our statistics will be useful to promote responsible consumption and avoid the pitfalls of buying prices.

Faciliter Repair

Despite our best efforts, there will be failures. It is inevitable. Nothing is eternal in this world, and the parts that make up our devices are no exception to this rule. So we anticipate. Trained in proper maintenance, accustomed to pampering mechanics, we, users of (p)repair, will recognize better than anyone the symptoms of malfunction in our products. It already gives a great head start when it comes to repair! And to amplify this lead, we will indicate for products which parts are compatible, with links to distributors. In a few finger taps, the right part will be ordered.

If the parts no longer exist on the conventional market, for really old products for example, users will be able to easily indicate that they are looking for this or that reference. Other users who would have kept an old product with failures can then debone it to cannibalize parts and make happy the users in demand for these parts.

If the medical diagnosis of a product points on a too big problem to solve it by ourselves, the application will also connect us with professional repairers, competent to take in charge the operation.

The more our tool is used, the more effective it will become to facilitate the management of our devices from A to Z, and avoid consuming what we do not need.

Identify Market Opportunities

Unfortunately, it can happen that a product is irreparable due to the lack of available parts.

In this case, we can connect with each other to exchange spare parts. But if 10 000 of us are asking for a solution for the same failure, and nothing seems to exist, that can potentially translate into an opportunity for a company. Requests can be identified and quantified in real time thanks to (p)repair. If a company finds a solution to an unresolved problem, this will again avoid the purchase of new devices, as much as possible.

This logic will work with a large number of users.

Measure

We improve what we measure.

As we want to constantly improve, we intend to measure our impact, for the mission we have given ourselves. We will work on this with researchers, and we will develop consistent indicators to ensure that our organization is involved in reducing the consumption of new products.

Conclusion

Let us go back to basics. We love life. That is why we act, to translate into actions the infinite gratitude we feel. We want to preserve what we love.

When we read that 50 % of breakdowns can be prevented with good maintenance, we told ourselves that there was something to do. How to avoid these 14 million outages per year in France?

Let us return to the will, the famous rule of the 7R:

• refuse
• reduce
• rmaintain
• repair
• reuse
• reinvent
• recycle
• renvendicate

We are convinced that good maintenance must be on this noble list.

We are pragmatic, and we rely on current technologies. We rely on the experience of other projects. We are convinced that developing open-source tools for a wide audience is a good solution. A collaborative tool, which allows networking in a very wide way, and sharing knowledge and information in a playful way is always a powerful idea.

Our goal is to reduce the consumption of products, to reduce the externalities related to their manufacture and end of life. Our approach is to organize a fabulous open-source database to provide good maintenance advices. And this database will be the starter of other good recipes: what are the best buys (when needed), how to solve the most frequent failures, how to make the repair decision as easy as possible?

We think the right path forward is open source. Free knowledge sharing to move forward. Sharing information to make the right decisions individually and collectively. We lay an additional stone on this path, so that it is more and more visible, and may one day become the main road.

But alone, we will be nothing. Future users, future contributors to this project: it is thanks to all of us, that we will be able to move forward and create a new free and collaborative common.

Together with (p)repair, let’s prepare our future!

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