In this article, Meera Siva, Director at Shelter Venture Fund explores the impact of ModRoof and how it is transforming the lives of low-income families in India and beyond.
The Problem of Roofing Access
Housing is often simplified to ‘a roof over one’s head’. But even this simple task is out of reach for many. There are an estimated 65 million people (13.6 million households) living in urban slums in India, where roofs are often just metal or plastic sheets. These makeshift solutions leak in the monsoon, are noisy in the rain, get very hot in the summer, crack, corrode and require regular replacement. The issue extends to other critical infrastructure, including factories and schools in low-income neighborhoods leading to detrimental health impacts.
The alternative is a reinforced concrete cement, or RCC, roof which costs 5-10 times more and hence is out of reach for many. In 2014, Hasit Ganatra founded ReMaterials to address the social need and market gap for a roofing product that addresses some of the issues – durability, thermal and sound comfort – at an affordable cost. The problem is not just in India; estimates show that a billion people globally need improved roofing solutions.
ReMaterials’ ModRoof - Sustainable, affordable, modular roofing
Through his company ReMaterials, Hasit developed ‘ModRoof’ – a modular roofing solution fabricated using industrial and agricultural waste, sourced locally in Ahmedabad. A paneled roof costs almost half the price of an RCC roof and lasts for 25 years. It is waterproof, fireproof, soundproof and requires low maintenance. Additionally, data collected by Selco Foundation showed that homes with ModRoof were 5 degrees cooler. Given the risks in roofing, ModRoof is safe, with over 750 tests and evaluations done on the product.
Many low-income families live on small property lots, leaving only the option for vertical expansion as their family needs grow. Unlike typical low-income roofing materials, ModRoofs are load bearing and can be safely used as the floor for the next level. This is one of the most desirable features of an RCC roof, but importantly ModRoof costs 40-50% less than concrete slab roofs. The product is easy and fast to install – up to 10x faster than an RCC roof.
ModRoof also has many environmental benefits. In addition to its durability and repairability, the product is 91 percent recyclable at the end of life, compared to less than 3% for conventional cement options. Its high strength to weight ratio – 4x higher than conventional cement options – helps keep the product much lighter than alternatives. Because ModRoof is 8-10x lighter per square meter, it is much easier and more fuel efficient to ship.
Impact Potential and Way Forward
In 2015, ReMaterials started partnerships with microfinance institutions to increase access to their product and further improve affordability. Since 2018, the startup has installed approximately 600 roofs totaling 175,000 square feet. This has saved an estimated 1300 tonnes of CO2 and 900,000 litres of water, compared to if conventional roofs were installed.
The company has raised early investment from the family of Dr. C.K. Prahalad (author of The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid, which kick started the social enterprise movement); Habitat for Humanity International’s Shelter Venture Fund; Professor My T. Le of Stanford University; and Arpit Vyas, an Ahmedabad-based pharma business owner.
ReMaterials has also launched a premium roofing product, which has seen good adoption rates in recent years. It is also innovating with products, including creating a biomaterial that can eliminate the need for toxic formaldehyde-based glue by replacing plywood and MDF materials.
But green technology and roofing remain at the heart of ReMaterials. The colorful impact of Hasit’s original roofs can be seen in kite-flying season and any time families use their roofs for play.
Team
Founded in 2014, Re-Materials has now grown to a team of 20 staff and contractors. Headquartered in Ahmedabad, they are actively working in Mumbai and Pune, in addition to across Gujarat.
Hasit Ganatra – Founder and CEO
Hasit Ganatra, an engineering graduate from the University of Southern California, leads ReMaterials. Hasit has worked with startups in the fields of rural solar electrification at Duron Energy, electric vehicles at S-Commute, and low-income housing at Worldhaus.
Mradul Kaushik – Installation Manager
Mradul is a civil engineering graduate from Narsee Monjee college, Mumbai who oversees roof installations. He has been with the company since 2020.
Prabhakar Pandey – Lead Engineer
Prabhakar is a mechanical engineer from IIT Kanpur who heads the engineering side of ReMaterials. He has been with the company since 2020.
John Howard - Advisor
An entrepreneur and advisor, John mentors many talented teams to build meaningful products and organizations. He conceptualized, launched and led MIT Horizon, an initiative to help organizations learn about emerging technologies through an expert, impartial, up-to-date content library.
Deepa Prahalad - Advisor
Deepa is an author, speaker and innovation/design strategy consultant, with an emphasis on emerging markets and social innovation. She writes for the Huffington Post, Harvard Business Review, and others. She is an elected member of the International Academy of Management and was ranked #34 on the inaugural Thinkers50 India list in 2013. She serves on the Advisory Boards of the Global Peter Drucker Forum, Arogya World and is a patron of the Indiaspora Forum.
Nirmeet Kacheria - Advisor
An industrial engineering graduate from Georgia Tech, Nirmeet worked in the USA for four years before returning to India and starting his architectural products business, which is now a successful brand, selling in multiple countries including India, Middle East and the USA.
Background of the Author
ReMaterials has received investment from Shelter Venture Fund, which is the Venture Capital arm of Habitat for Humanity, a global nonprofit housing organization. The author of this article, Ms. Meera Siva is the Director at Shelter Venture Fund.
Ms. Siva manages the impact-first fund focused on low-income housing innovations. She started her career as an engineer in the Silicon Valley, designing semiconductor chips and systems; she has several patents in this domain. She worked at the Hindu Business Line, a financial newspaper in India, covering listed equity, personal finance and startups. Ms. Siva has also co-founded RaNa Investment Advisors, a consulting firm that worked with startups, angel investors and entrepreneur support networks for investment and market research, due-diligence and advisory. She is a Board Member of CFA Society India, a member Society of CFA Institute, USA.
