Fem-Gen
flow freely
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Presented by Ayanna Morton
February 2021
Period poverty is a crucial, yet disregarded, public health issue that affects more than 500 million women and girls worldwide. Period poverty refers to a females lack of access to hygienic menstrual products and sanitation facilities, due to financial circumstance, lack of knowledge, and/or geographic location. This issue poses a threat to the livelihood and health of women/girls everywhere, it also indirectly affects their families. Menstrual products are costly and taxed in most places because they are considered luxury items and not a necessity. There have been various measures taken to cease period poverty such as, nonprofit organizations facilitating donations/drives, dispensers in schools and other public restrooms that cost minimal money, and bills presented to the House of Representatives including the Good Samaritan Menstrual Products Act.
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My plan is to improve upon the feminine product dispensers that are already in schools, workplaces, and other public restrooms. Current dispensers are mounted metal rectangular boxes that require you to put in change and it will dispense a pad or tampon depending on which which knob you turn, similar to a gumball machine. My innovation is Fem-Gen, a fun play on words, short for feminine generator. Fem-Gen is an automated dispenser that requires the consumer to swipe a school ID or work ID card in order to receive a pad or tampon. It is free of charge which eliminates the use of money, a factor in perpetuating period poverty, in exchange for menstrual products.
ScienceTechnologyEngineering ArtMathematics
SCIENCE
Science is incorporated in the fact that less women will experience health issues stemming from lack of access to sanitary menstrual products. Some issues include reproductive tract infections, changes in a woman's natural PH, yeast infections, increasing risk of cervical cancer, hepatitis B infection, etc. According to BBC Magazine, around 70% of the reproductive infections in Indian women are caused by poor menstrual hygiene. Out of 800 million women who have their menstrual cycle globally, more than 60% experience period poverty monthly. Thus the more women there are properly prepared for their period, the less infections, diseases, and deaths will emerge.
TECHNOLOGY
Technology is incorporated in the swipe card feature. The swipe card feature is how women will access the menstrual products provided. Consumers must swipe their card then select their product of choice, it’s that simple. All swipe cards assigned to a work facility or educational institution will work in the system. A woman would swipe their card through the scanner in a downward motion, the card will be processed and accepted or denied depending on previous visits in the same day.
ENGINEERING
Fem-gen includes components of engineering because Fem-gen is designed to only function via swipe card and gives consumers the option to choose a pad or tampon through the two buttons below the swipe card feature. It is engineered to only let a single consumer receive three products a day. Also there are 12 visible spiral compartments within the machine engineered to hold the tampons and pads on either side of the metal divider in between them. The spiral coil components are programmed to turn clockwise to release the menstrual product of one's choice when an ID card is scanned into the swipe card feature which is connected to an ID recognition-operated apparatus.
ART
Art is of course demonstrated in the overall construction and design. Fem-gen is an innovation based off of the average half-time show, mid-day snack vending machine and current feminine product dispensers. The soft rectangular frame of Fem-gen is designed to make the product fit easily and be discreetly mounted in womens restrooms. Art is also included in the discreteness of the advertisement on Fem-gen, to ensure no extra attention is attracted to those who simply do not want their personal business broadcasted via bright signs and logos. The feminine dispensers that are already in womens restrooms are metal vertically rectangular boxes that are about 12in W x 30in H and are mounted instead of embedded into the wall. The bulky appearance can often be displeasing to the eye. Fem-gen will be embedded into the wall of the restroom and in color, yet still discrete, to make the overall system more appealing to the eye and like it was made with thought for the benefit of women and not just a metal mounted box.
MATHEMATICS
Math is incorporated because women can only receive 3 pads/tampons a day from Fem-gen before consumers must wait until the following day. The average woman changes their menstrual products about 3 times a day. The system is designed to use specific coding to manage the amount of times a consumer swipes and when they reach the limit. Math is also incorporated in the funding of Fem-gen. The system and products inside will be sponsored by taxpayer dollars which will eliminate consumers having to pay directly out of pocket because money is a primary factor in prolonging period poverty. This will qualify as federal aid, which does not require consumers to have medical or health insurance, much like food stamps.
How Does Fem-Gen Work?
Fem-Gen is an automated menstrual product dispenser that requires a school ID or work ID in order to receive a pad or tampon. Dispensers will be implemented in all female school and workplace restrooms. Consumers can only swipe and receive three menstrual products a day to ensure women/girls are not taking more than they need. On average women use 3 pads/tampons in one day to ensure good health. After three swipes of a school or work ID the dispenser will no longer supply consumers with menstrual products until the next day.
35 STATES
Sales tax is implemented on menstrual products in 35 states in the US
20% -US
28% -Uganda
70% -Malawi
Worldwide, girls miss a substantial amount of school days due to lack of menstrual products & access to sanitation facilities
500 million
500 million women and girls live each month in period poverty
2,500-3,500 days
Women spend on average between 2,500-3,500 days, 7-10 years, on their menstrual cycle throughout their lifetime