fab labs around the world - heloisa neves

FAB LABaround the world

by Fab Lab Brasil Association

a vision of different fab lab models

This presentation is a project by Fab Lab Brasil Association focused on the concept of open information and has the objective to understand and share content about the Fab Lab global network. The pictures and some informations were obtained through visits and interviews made by Fab Lab Brasil members and

through the archives of the project “Tour d´Horizon des Fab Labs” coordinated by Fing – Fondation Internet Nouvelle Génération. Some pictures were taken directly from specific fab lab webpages.

More information: www.fablabbrasil.orgwww.fing.org

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Fab Labs presented at this document:

EnglandManchester (2012, may)

NetherlandsAmsterdam (2012, october)Utrecht (2012, october)

FranceToulouse (2012, octuber)Paris (2012, november)

SpainBarcelona (2012, febrery)Sevilla (2012, september)

ENGLANDFab Lab Manchester

First Fab Lab in England

History: At the center of an ancient and vibrant industrial region, Manchester is the ideal city to host the manufacturing revolution, and it is quite natural that the Manufacturing Institute in Manchester has set up a Fab Lab.

Facilities: 1 Shop Bot, 1 vinyl cutter, 1 laser cutter, 1 Rolland Modela, 1 3D printer, 1 embroidery machine, 1 vacuum forming. Laser cutter and Shop Bot are the most used (6 hours per week for each)

Location: In the center of Manchester.

Staff: One full-time manager, two technicians and a full-time secretary

Open to the public: Open two days per week (Friday and Saturday) during which anyone can use the machines for free. In return, they must document their projects. The other days of the week are booked for workshops (eg monthly event "Do It With Others") and external paid projects (58 € per hour).

With students of Fab Academy: Yes, since 2011

Attendance: 3/4 projects per open day

Business model and financing:The Fab Lab has received funding from the Manufacturing Institute, which is an independent organization founded 15 years ago in order to carry out projects promoting innovation. This allowed them to finance the local machines (it cost between 90 and 140 k €). It is through the paid days that it`s possible to fund open days: Fridays and Saturdays. However, they are not independent. They are still under the support of the Manufacturing Institute.

Public: Mainly students and inventors

Overall impression / mood: This lab is certainly a center of creativity and innovation. There seems to be a lot of discussion in the Fab Lab where users learn a lot from others (through a system similar to Utrecht)

Font: http://fing.org/?Fab-Labs-overview&lang=fr (translation from french to english by Fab Lab Brasil Association)

http://fing.org/?Fab-Labs-overview&lang=fr


This is the building where Fab Lab Manchester is located. It is on the ground floor at the left side of the buillding.


Overview of the lab showing the meeting table and the room with small machines (at the back).


Detail of the room that contains the 3d printer, laser cutter, embroidery machine and electronic components


Meeting/work table and lounge with kitchen


The Shop Bot


Detail displaying some machines



Camera Station - to document the projects made at Fab Lab and to share with others.

NETHERLANDSFab Lab Amsterdam

A Fab Lab in the heart of the Dutch capital

History: Founded in 2008 under the leadership of Waag Society

Facilities:1 Shop Bot, 1 vinyl cutter, 1 laser cutter, 1 high precision milling, 3D Printers.

Area: 150m2 / 250m2

Location: Located at the first floor of a small castle in the center of Amsterdam, close to the Red Light District and to the Central Station

Staff: 1 full-time manager, between 3 to 6 students (for a period of 2 to 6 months, usually from the design area), one part-time secretary that works in both spaces: Waag Society and Fab Lab Amsterdam

Open to the public: Open two days per week (Tuesday and Thursday) during which the use of the machines is free. In return, they must document their projects. The other days of the week are booked for workshops, projects and external paying projects undertaken by the staff

Students from Fab Academy: Yes

Attendance: 5 projects per open day

Economic Model and financing: The Fab Lab receives funding dedicated to community open days through the Waag Society. This is half of their budget. The other half comes from workshops, Fab Lab clients during the closed days, and from the loan of their equipment. Expenditures are mainly in the remuneration of staff. The premises are loaned by the municipality of Amsterdam.

Public: Mainly designers and design students.

Overall Impression / atmosphere: This lab is certainly a center of creativity in design with some great innovative projects and special attention to the quality of the design and technics.





Can you imagine this building and

this street here 500 years?

I can´t but I hope someone takes care

of it. It´s a beautiful place.

Picture by Dialogue Cafe 2010

This is the building where Fab Lab Amsterdam takes place, but centuries ago (left). Impressive as the past and future are so near here. See the same space today, with the pictures down. I´m sure that someone is taking a lot of care!


Fab Moments - online plataform and device to document the projects made at Fab Lab and share with others.


Football game completely constructed at Fab Lab Amsterdam and a screen for the best moments.


Fab Charter - principles that every fab lab should follow. Here, a version on the door.

Video Conference - a screen open to other laboratories of the network for clases and projects together.


Harmony between past andfuture!


Ideal velocity and power for work at laser cutter.


Milling space with the Shop Bot.

Business activities. picture by Fab Lab Amsterdam webpage



Workshop days. picture by Fab Lab Amsterdam webpage


Workshop days.picture by Fab Lab Amsterdam webpage

a fab project - a whole guitar constructed at Fab Lab Amsterdam (project by Alex Schaub) picture by Fab Lab Amsterdam webpage


Open Table (project by Jens Dyvik).picture by Fab Lab Amsterdam webpage



Fab Lab Amsterdam - Fashion Projects.left picture by Fab Lab Amsterdam webpage


Fab Lab Amsterdam - Product Projectsright picture by Fab Lab Amsterdam webpage

Low Cost Prothesis Project (Project by Fab Lab Amsterdam, Waag Society, HONF and Sprint)


Fab Lab multicolored

History:The Fab Lab was established in 2008 under the leadership of an university consortium, the city of Utrecht, the European Union, the foundation for the promotion of innovation and Rabobank.

Facilities:1 3D printer (ZPrinter 450), 2 laser cutter, 1 shop bot, 1 vinyl cutter, 1 milling

Area: 100 m²

Location:The Lab is located in an industrial area of Utrecht. The building hosting the Lab is also occupied by a workshop of architects and designers (working a lot with protospace).

Staff:The staff is composed of two managers: one from the design area (2 half-days per week), the other from the engineering area (4 days per week), 1 engineer, 2–4 trainees (design or mechanical students) and a part-time secretary.

Open to the public: Mondays and Tuesdays are open days, the other days need to be booked but it should be noted that the operation is extremely flexible.

Students from Fab Academy: no

Attendance: ten projects per day

Economic Model and financing: The city of Utrecht, the Chamber of Commerce, the region, the European Union and Rabobank are the main funders of this project. According to the manager, the cost of running a Fab Lab is 1000 € per day.

Audience: designers, inventors, engineers, mechanics, artists.

Overall Impression / atmosphere:The Fab Lab users come from very different fields. Pushing users to help each other has created a dynamic that everyone appreciates. Note that this Fab Lab is offset from the center, and therefore the communication around this place was particularly effective (particularly through television media).


NETHERLANDSProtospace - Fab Lab Utrecht



Reception.


Weekly calendar.


Fab Moments - online plataform and device to documentthe projects made in Fab Lab and share with others.


Exhibition of the projects made at Protospace - Fab Lab Utrecht.


Prices of materials and specific form to calculate how much you should pay for material and machine use.



FAB Flash - helping to document the projects.

Bender made at Protospace - Fab Lab Utrecht.


Laser cutter velocity and power table and the laser machine working.



Instructions of work for each machine.

Ludic game with machines information.


Electronic stuff and space.


Ultimaker Space - a important project from Protospace - Fab Lab Utrecht (community of makers that created a 3d printer and are selling the product and creating an envolved community).



Ulti Router (left) - another project by the makers group. And a big Ultimaker in action (right).

Milling space.



Some details of laboratory organization


Detail of the coffe corner (left) and some products created at Protospace - Fab Lab Utrecht.

Coffee corner with a self buy system.


FRANCEFac Lab Paris

Community Fab Lab

History:Founded in 2012

Facilities: 1 laser cutter, 1 milling, 1 3d printer, some machines under construction for the fab lab community

Location: Université de Cergy Pontoise

Staff:1 manager, 3 directors

Open to the public:completely open every day

Students from Fab Academy: No

Economic Model and financing: The machine were financed by Orange.

Public:Community in general

Overall Impression / atmosphere:The most bottom up fab lab, really constructed by the community.

Map of the lab and Fab Charter at the entrance of the lab

FRANCEFac Lab Paris

Room with small machines, videoconference system, some projects, reception and lounge.

FRANCEFac Lab Paris

The video conference system

FRANCEFac Lab Paris

FRANCEFac Lab Paris

A curious project with enfasis in three concepts: share, document and participate

FRANCEFac Lab Paris

FRANCEFac Lab Paris

The room that shelters the laser cutter and materials

FRANCEFac Lab Paris

Some analogic machines and storage room

FRANCEFac Lab Paris

Electronic components, machines construction

FRANCEFac Lab Paris

FRANCEFac Lab Paris

Detail of the room

Constructing a vacuum forming and a message left from Fab Lab Ultrecht Team

FRANCEFac Lab Paris

SPAINFab Lab Barcelona

First spanish fab lab and one of the first of the network

Facilities:1 Shop Bot, 1 milling, 1 vinyl cutter, 1 precision milling, 1 laser cutter, 4 3d printers, 1 kuka robot

Location:Inside the IAAC (Institute of Advanced Architecture of Catalunya)

Staff:1 manager full-time, 2 technicians and between 1 to 3 students

Open to the public:Open to the public with different prices for students and professionals.


Economic Model and financing: The Fab Lab Barcelona is financied by IAAC and government of Barcelona

Public: designers and architetcs, mostly.

Entrance to the laboratory, which is inside the IAAC


Common space for work (IAAc students + fab lab)


First space of Fab Lab Barcelona: small machines (precision miling, 3d printers, laser cutter and electronic space


World map with all the fab labs and pictures of the staff


Panoramic view


Team working in a regular day


At the second table, Fab Academy students working


Electronic projects


Detail of the electronic space (components and machines)


View of the second room (where are the big machines)


Big laser cutter


Milling machine


Kuka robot with 14 axes


Kuka working


SPAINFab Lab Sevilla

South Spain Fab Lab

Facilities:2 Milling machine, 2 laser cutters, 3 3d printers, 1 vinyl cutter

Location:Fab Lab Sevilla is located inside the Escuela Tecnica Superior de Arquitectura de Sevilla

Staff: 1 director part time (professor of the school), 1 technician (contracted from the university), 3 architects working per project.

Open to the public:Open to the public everyday


Economic Model and financing:The university pays for 1 technical and bought the machines. The students pay a reduced cost to use the machines and professionals pay a different price than the students.

Public:Mostly architecture students and professionals. Sometimes, people from interactive and multimedia area.

Overall Impression / atmosphere: This fab lab has the spririt of community, they have a very horizontal model and the students feel completely free to come to the lab, study, construct things and meet people. The lab also receive several professors that are visting the university and professionals that come to Sevilla for a special workshop or conference.

The entrance of Fab LAb Sevilla and the building of the Universidad de Sevilla, where fab lab is located



General view of the Fab Lab - open space with work tables and machines


Entrance and administration room


The two laser cutters


Examples of materials for laser cutter


3d printer and video conference system


Milling machine room


Storage room


Some experiments


Bird house constructed at the first Fab Lab Kids Sevilla

some reflexions

Fab Labs aren´t machine spaces

Fab Labs are meeting spaces for people that use the machines in their projects

Fab Labs aren´t machine spaces

some reflexions

Fab Labs aren´t spaces exclusively centered on students

some reflexions

Fab Labs are spaces where the students meet profesionals, teachers and community to share knowledge

Fab Labs aren´t spaces exclusively centered on students

some reflexions

In Fab Labs there´s no linear structure, like theory coming before practice

some reflexions

In Fab Labs the knowledge is get through more complex ways. it´s usual the concepts of: hands on, fabricate things and understand after

In Fab Lab there´s no linear structure, like theory coming before practice

some reflexions

Fab Labs aren´t spaces where the user wait for the technician help when they find a problem

some reflexions

The users of a Fab Lab are active people that help each other, in order to solve their problems. They also document how to solve the problem to help the community.

Fab Labs aren´t spaces where the user wait for the technician help when they find a problem

some reflexions

In Fab Labs we don´t use the concept of author, patents or copyrights

some reflexions

We use the philosophy of “open”, co-creating, learning with the peers, sharing the information with the community, sharing documentation with the network in order to democratize the knowledge and the access to the new technologies and achieving a more innovative project

In Fab Labs we don´t use the concept of author, patents or copyrights

some reflexions

A project of Fab Lab Brasil Association

Coordinated by Heloisa [email protected]

WithAndrea Bandoni (survey at the dutch Fab Labs)Juliana Henno (english revision)

contact:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.fablabbrasi.org

http://www.fablabbrasi.org

fab labs around the world - heloisa neves

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