UnitedHands

UnitedHands

A digital solution for coordinating volunteer helpers during reconstruction after flood disasters

TIME

oct. – feb. 2024/235

COURSE

Bachelorthesis

TEAM MEMBERS

André Jacoby, Elisa Moder, Lena van Maris

SUPERVISION

Prof. Jens Döring, Prof. Ulf Harr

TOOLS

Figma, After Effects, Illustrator

MY TASKS

Research, Concept of Interaction, UI Design, Illustrationen & Icons, Prototyping

PROZESS

GOAL

UnitedHands revolutionises the coordination of volunteers during flood disasters and enables faster and more efficient support during reconstruction. In view of increasing flood events and the growing burden on professional emergency services, innovative solutions such as UnitedHands are indispensable.

The app relieves the burden on emergency services by organising and coordinating helpers – both experienced and first responders. Intuitive user guidance makes it easy to get started and motivates long-term participation.

RESEARCH

In order to develop a sound understanding of our topic, we conducted interviews with experts from various specialist areas. These discussions enabled us to better understand the perspectives and needs of the individual target groups and to gain a more comprehensive overview of the topic. In order to include all relevant stakeholders, we interviewed fire service commanders, members of the volunteer fire service, district fire chiefs, people affected by flood disasters, volunteers and those responsible for existing digital systems such as the FLIWAS flood information and warning system. This enabled us to comprehensively take into account the views and experiences of all stakeholders in the context of a flood disaster.

Interviews

At the beginning, our questions were aimed at familiarising ourselves with the topic and understanding basic processes, problems and possible improvements. We adapted our questions to the expertise and perspective of our interview partners.

High Impact – low effort matrix

After we had organised our pain points, it was important for us to organise them again in a matrix, which helps us to helps us to define the problem space more precisely and determine how far-reaching our solution space is.

how might we’s

How can we ensure that volunteers are prepared for their mission and that a situation overview helps them to know what to do next?How can we provide volunteers with important information early on and at the right time?

USER JOURNEY

The user journey was always at the centre of our project. It enabled us to analyse the processes and phases of all three stakeholder groups in detail in the context of a flood disaster. The user journey served as a central basis that we could refer back to again and again in order to review processes and retrospectively validate our ideas. When creating it, we integrated important findings from interviews, pain points and other aspects in order to specifically identify those areas of the user journey in which we wanted to start. We recognised particular potential in the area of task distribution, where we wanted to develop a concept for the efficient creation and assignment of tasks.

HOW ARE TASKS ENTERED FOR THE HELPERS?

Those affected can enter their tasks directly via our website.

To do this, they first provide their contact details, such as their telephone number, so that helpers can reach them in an emergency.

You can then create different tasks for each affected area. The room, the approximate size of the area and the type of task are specified.

Based on this information, the task is created and the required number of helpers, tools and estimated duration are determined.

TERMINAL FOR OFFLINE HELPERS

There are two ways to receive a task: via our app – our main focus – or via the terminal for offline helpers.

The terminal is located at the material centre, where helpers can borrow missing tools. There, a member of the organisation team records the relevant data of the helpers, including their telephone number, tools they have brought and team size.

This not only allows gaps to be filled for individuals or smaller groups, but also means that helpers without an app can be assigned simple tasks.

UNITEDHANDS APP

UnitedHands revolutionises the coordination of volunteers during flood disasters and enables faster and more efficient support for reconstruction. In view of increasing flood events and the growing burden on professional emergency services, innovative solutions such as UnitedHands are indispensable. The app relieves the burden on emergency services by organising and coordinating helpers – both experienced and first responders.

An intuitive user guidance makes it easy to get started and motivates long-term participation.

FLEXIBILITY vs GUIDANCE

With UnitedHands, we create a balance between clear coordination and flexible initiative. Our app not only gives helpers an overview of the most urgent tasks, but also shows them specifically what they can do next. At the same time, we deliberately leave room for manoeuvre, for example when procuring materials, so that helpers can act independently. This enables us to offer structure and security without restricting the flexibility and motivation of the volunteers.

Our central feature is the task card. It guides helpers through the entire process by always clearly defining the next step and linking it to a suitable primary button. This allows helpers to maintain an overview at all times and know exactly what needs to be done next. The task card is the centrepiece of our app and ensures intuitive, structured and efficient coordination in the field.

Our call to action follows a dynamic principle. The first step is the CTA: Route to the material location, followed by the QR code scanner, the route to the deployment location and finally completing the task.

Guidance

FEATURES

Once the style of our app were determined, I developed my screens for the fridge.

Onboarding to be perfectly prepared for the assignment.

View arrival status so that volunteers arrive at the right time.

Select your task as a group.

Make requests to borrow tools from other volunteers.

Scan the QR code to record the material handover or to add helpers to the permanent team.

In the end, a concept, a kit and an app were created, which is visualized in this video.

With the help of this video we were able to make our concept easily accessible and understandable.

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WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SEE NEXT?

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