Mobile Makerspace for teens

I grew up in a school system that, mistakenly, saw no need for a shop class. But perhaps it was for the best because today’s teens get something even better: Makerspaces. Makerspaces, or hackerspaces, or fablabs, (all variations on a theme) are shop classes for the modern day. A place where people explore the fantastic world of making.

Now I have my very own makerspace: Hero Design, and we are going to help the teen makers at the Palo Alto Art Center and the Palo Alto City Library design the furniture for their new Maker Space.

Working with the Palo Alto Art Center and the Palo Alto City Library and at Noll and Tam we’ve guided the teens as they embark on their design process. Based on the designs they imagine, Hero will produce a set of Makerspace furniture that will then tour Bay Area public spaces.

Several weeks ago the teens toured our studio and we introduced them to world of CNC fabrication. And yesterday the teens presented their final prototypes for the type of furniture they want. The concepts were fantastic, creative, and practical.

The concepts included:

• A showcase/shelving unit spelling out the word MAKE
• A seat, with a small cubby underneath, with a bouncy ball top
• Configurable, collapsible tables on wheels
• A two part  mobile tool chest
• A mobile parts-bin wall

We are going to have a lot of fun designing and building these.