Philippines – Arts & Crafts in Aquarium Trade

Poseidon Sciences integrates with the communities where it has commercial presence by indentifying livelihood technologies for coastal and inland communities near each of our stations. Such development program is administered through Poseidon Science Foundation and other marketing/technical partners.

In the Philippines, a new program was developed through a year of testing to create an artistic, decorative covers for the aquarium hobby industry. In developed countries, the aquarium hobby industry is a US $ 2 billion market comprising of ornamental fish, tanks, equipment and ancillary equipment and services. The majority of the aquarium tanks used, particularly by beginners, is the 10 gallon glass tank, equipped with lights and cover.

The Concept:

Plain aquarium tanks highlight the interior of the tank for viewing enjoyment, while the outer top is typically plain. The idea came from a visit at SHMRC research labs where decorative covers made of wood and bamboo are used as tops to enhance the beauty of the tanks. The idea was to conceive a more elaborate structure similar in design, using wood and bamboo that can cover the aquarium tops to create a decorative setting. Prototyping was done by wood craftsmen and artists to create several designs in 2010. These designs are being transferred for production by local artisans in 2011 being retrained for wood working to produce high quality products through a village cooperative scheme.

The success of such an endeavor involves both a high quality workmanship, reasonable cost and marketing of the final commercial products worldwide. It is a process that takes time and resources. However, if successfully implemented, this project can eventually employ hundreds of coastal fisher folks and artisans within the local community.

We hope you like our community concept and the designs shown here. Please send any comments to: info@poseidonsciences.com. Use Aquatops as subject heading. Thank you.