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Fablabs are one of the key points supporting innovation and entrepreneurship today. These centers provide young and innovative entrepreneurs with technical infrastructure, education, and collaboration opportunities, thereby enhancing their growth and success potential. Rapidly adapting to technological advancements, FabLabs facilitate the implementation of innovative projects, thereby fostering economic growth. These incentives create new job opportunities. Therefore, the positive impact of Fablabs on entrepreneurship and innovation is extremely important for economic development and is considered necessary to examine. By fostering an innovative and dynamic business environment, FabLabs contribute to the success of young entrepreneurs and small businesses. Therefore, supporting and proliferating such innovation hubs play a critical role in economic growth and sustainable development. This critical point makes the study different from other studies. This study focuses on the effects of Fablabs in the field of entrepreneurship and innovation and aims to reveal their important role in economic development. In the study, it was seen that Fablabs encourage innovation by supporting entrepreneurship and R&D activities, and provide added value to the economy by increasing the competitiveness of companies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What are the distinctive characteristics of the co-design practices at FabLab Nepal, the first humanitarian FabLab in South Asia? This paper presents select case materials from the project '3D Printing for Spinal Cord Injury' to illustrate how FabLab Nepal operates through collaborative, co-design practices and then reflects on how these observations can enrich a more general understanding of what pluriversal design looks like in practice. Co-design initiatives were developed to suit the local practices and situated knowledge of the project context. What was remarkable was that the participants acknowledged that the co-design approach was not novel, however, they did recognise that its impact was beginning to transform everyday lives, in a gradual transition from survival in a disaster situation to local empowerment and capacity building. In this context, pluriversal design was observed to take the form of knowledge exchange and skills development in the use of printing technology, which gave a voice to the patient's needs and desires in the design and manufacturing process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: "Science Dissemination for Scholars with Disabilities" is a noteworthy topic which is still sparse and needs more attention by the scientific community. OBJECTIVE: In order to increase interest in the study of science and on access to research without exclusion emphasis needs to be paid towards innovation within a scientific environment. Our hope is to encourage further consideration by the scientific community and present strategies that promote the full inclusion of scholars with disabilities in society. METHODS: This work is the result of research experiences in the field of Science and Inclusion within the activities carried out at the ICTP Scientific Fabrication Laboratory of Trieste, in Italy, over the last eight years. Description of some issues on the use of open source digital technologies available at Scientific FabLabs to support education and scientific know-how for all are assessed, and a collection of interesting novel approaches developed in our SciFabLab are given as examples. The discussion is presented to motivate further research and give technological priorities. RESULTS: We discuss and show concrete examples on how to make "almost anything" through Scientific FabLabs to disseminate science and remove practical barriers offering people with disabilities more independence and opportunities to study science. Standard theories of Disability in the STEM context are also discussed. CONCLUSIONS: This contribution is relevant from the point of view of the social model in that supportive digital tools developed at Scientific FabLabs can be manufactured with participation, assistance and presence by people with a disability. Through this class of Fablabs, we aim to sustain new generations of scientists without any exclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The idea of makerspace in a library is one that has re-emphasized the importance of library spaces in today's digitally controlled society. Makerspace as a concept promote creative learning, critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills among people and also inspires them to shift from being passive consumers to active creators. The library makerspace provides space for people of all ages to build prototypes, explore new ideas, and build something together, thus enhancing human capacity building among library users. Consequently, this paper theoretically examined makerspace as a library tool for capacity building in developing countries. The concept of makerspace, makerspace tools, and the best practices for effective makerspace were discussed. The paper also explored makerspace as a library tool for capacity building as well as the challenges faced in creating library makerspaces. The paper concluded that library makerspaces provide a safe place for people to feel comfortable creating and using powerful tools without feeling pressured. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shared spaces dedicated to digital fabrication such as Fablabs and Makerspaces, together with co-working spaces and start-ups incubators, are said to contribute to the sociospatial reconfiguration of work in digital urban economies characterised by sharing practices and self-organization. However, part of the academic literature on the topic partially reproduces the representations of Makers provided by the mainstream discourse developed by tech-gurus and consultants, which understand them as entrepreneurial innovators. Moreover, when Making is analysed as a new form of work, its spatial dimensions are identified either in the city or in the organisation in which Makers gather, considering both as bounded containers. To offer a more nuanced conceptualisation of Makers' work and arguing that Making as a new, heterogeneous form of value production entails different spatialities, the paper claims for analyses that start from a practical, relational, and more-than-human understanding of what Makers do. Drawing on a recent post-structuralist strand in economic geography and mobilising an Actor-Network sensibility, the article claims for an approach to the study of Makers and Fablabs as economic phenomena that goes beyond understanding them as part of a new urban infrastructure of workplaces targeting self-organised, entrepreneurial, yet collaborative individuals in the age of digital capitalism. Through the ethnographic study of a community of Makers that gather around the main Fablab of the post-industrial Italian city Turin, the paper shows how heterogeneous actor-networks translate Making as a form of value production in multiple and contingent ways, in which the distinction between production and reproduction is variously challenged. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The maker movement is a social movement with a craft spirit through which digital fabrication methods have become accessible at a personal level. Public libraries are ideal for offering makerspaces that enable the collaborative use of tools and technologies to foster informal learning. Three-dimensional (3D) printing has been one of the keys to the expansion of the maker movement, and its presence in libraries, often identified as the "gateway" to the maker philosophy, is not unusual, albeit remaining more a desire than a reality. We recount herein our experience of purchasing and setting up a 3D printer to enable a reflection on makerspaces in a public library. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues for rethinking the economic geography of sharing and making in light of the recent proliferation of open innovation, makerspaces and maker movements. Using empirical research from an example of one such makerspace – Manchester's FabLab – and engaging with a range of geographical literatures on making, sharing economies, and digital fabrication, we develop a critical account of sharing in principle and in practice. The portrayal of open innovation spaces, such as FabLabs, as novel makerspaces of alterity and sharing is a common and underpinning theme in both academic and marketing literature (Aldrich, 2014; Anderson, 2012; Doherty, 2012; Fab Foundation, 2012; Gershenfeld, 2005; Suire, 2019). However, our findings suggest that the values espoused by the FabLab, of involvement, connection and affinity, are quite literally being revised and rejected by makers who use the space. Time, labour and knowledge were for the most part described by participants as precious commodities to be savoured rather than shared. Thus, while sharing is an ordinarily economic practice, this does not mean it is always, inevitably or evenly employed by economic actors and communities, especially within counter-cultural networks. If these are to be the economies of the future, we implore economic geographers to critically engage further with the complexities of and within maker spaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Along with the spread of open-design environments and various types of digital fabrication tools (e.g., computer numerical control machines, laser cutting devices, and 3D printers), the "maker movement" or "personal fabrication" has been spreading worldwide over the past decade. This case study introduces grassroots activities in Japan that employ personal fabrication tools to manage the COVID-19 crisis, focusing on the co-design of do-it-yourself face shields for healthcare workers. We address the various issues emerging with face shield production: (1) development of face shield designs and materials, (2) examination and information sharing regarding the practicality and safety of open-source designs, and (3) collaboration with local factories. Thus, we demonstrate the significance of maker contributions to COVID-19 and provide suggestions to address future challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shared machine shops are designed for providing space for education, learning practices, however it is also being questioned if they are accessible and for whom, depending on their location, communication practices and the entry-point in knowledge. Nonetheless the narrative of innovation and creativeness being attached to these spaces, the shades, openness or even absence of innovation is of a scholarly quest. Moreover, their function of enabling designers-entrepreneurs with infrastructure, collaborative practices and expertise is at the forefront. This paper looks at the composition of hybrid business models behind the activity of a set of shared machine shops: a fablab, a makerspace, a hackerspace, and printervendor company and how it may be linked to the education and innovation practices performed by the members and visitors. In search for if and how they represent dots of change on the landscape of design, this paper examines the facilities and opportunities for young designers, students, and makers to engage with digital technologies in Budapest, in a context where public schools and universities lack the access to fablabs and maker laboratories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ease of access to technology has led to the arrival of a new industrial revolution that enables citizens to stop being mere users and become creators and builders of their own assets, relying on social trends based on collaborative culture. The emergence of the Fablab -Fabrication Laboratory- as environments that enhance these capacities in the users has been decisive in this technological democratization, and continues in an incessant rhythm, extending by the whole planet. Through seven stages, we describe in this article, the process of construction and validation of the information retrieval tool called FabLab Global Survey, with the objective of characterizing the FabLab phenomenon. The lack of theoretical references and the limited academic literature on the subject makes necessary to design such a tool based on contributions from the experts in the FabLab phenomenon and, for this purpose, it was considered appropriate to validate it using the Delphi method, since it allows the transmission of the subjective information provided by the experts, respecting their peculiarities. The challenge we face as researchers lies in our ability to transform the results obtained for their valuation through quantitative analytical tools. To compensate and balance the subjectivity of the opinions expressed by the panel of experts using nominal scales, the Torgerson's Model is used, which allows a rescaling of the original qualitative scale on an interval scale (quantitative) by verifying the equivalence between them. Likewise, and once the adequacy of the scale used is verified, a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the contributions generated by the group of experts is carried out, allowing to profile the characteristics of the resulting questionnaire. The excellent reception of the Fablab Global Survey obtained during the distribution among the managers of the FabLabs - which point out their suitability of the questions - shows the appropriateness of the Delphi method for the generation of research tools that allow, as it is the case in hand, open new lines of research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The maker movement is represented by autonomous Makerspaces and FabLabs worldwide. These open workshops enable people to transfer their ideas into physical objects. They deliver an infrastructure of digital manufacturing technologies and the corresponding knowledge to use this infrastructure. At the same time, they are regarded as the first pioneers of a new economy, in concrete terms: bottom-up economics. But what about the framework conditions of Makerspaces and FabLabs that are conditional to foster the participation in value creation, e.g. participatory design and co-creation? Based on a case analysis of FabLabs and Makerspaces in German- and Arabic-speaking countries qualitative interviews with FabLab representatives have been analysed. The attitudes of Makerspace and FabLab managers became clear; especially, their assumptions underlying their strategies of action according to participatory design and co-creation. How can the virtual and the physical participation be integrated? Which barriers prevent them from unfolding the full potential of their labs? And what measures promote their potential? The paper gives an overview of the country-specific results and allows general insights into the actual barriers and promoting measures. Based on the results, general recommendations can be given to foster participation in design and production processes. In the outlook, the development of bottom-up economics and its participatory characteristic can be illustrated by the analysis of the maker movement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article details how, on the basis of small numbers of case studies, an attentive clinician can detect patterns that can serve as hypotheses for other clinicians. The sagacity of an observer allows for discoveries that are only apparently due to chance. The author emphasises the importance of empiricism and serendipity in the progress of psychiatric therapy. Important clinical investigation tasks still belong to the clinician today. Transitions between clinical notes, small numbers of case studies, action research, pilot studies and clinical research should be encouraged. The steps to be taken to contribute to the progress of clinical and therapeutic knowledge are illustrated. They can be facilitated by "Fab Lab" type devices. They adapt to the flexible framework and responsiveness of frugal research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mit der Digitalisierung und der damit einhergehenden technologischen Revolution verschwinden die Grenzen der früher deutlich getrennten internen und externen Anteile der publizistischen Produktionskette. Außerdem befördert das Aufkommen von neuartigen und leicht zugänglichen Technologien wie 3D-Druck oder Lasercutting den Methodenwandel in der Wissenschaft und kommt interdisziplinären Ansätzen entgegen. Der Bedarf an Wissen zu diesen Technologien und dessen Vermittlung steigt aber zeitgleich mit. Die SLUB Dresden versucht, diesem Bedarf mit dem Angebot eines wissenschaftlichen Makerspace zu entsprechen. Erfolge dieses Konzeptes und Herausforderungen bei der Umsetzung werden hier beschrieben. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The introduction of 3D printers in public libraries presents opportunities and challenges, and in some respects they can be problematic. Successful experiences and the relationships established with the community through the shared creation and innovation that this new technology can generate are analyzed. Some reference documents are presented for centers considering the introduction of 3D printers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper will report on a case study that was conducted involving Grade 10 learners who were exposed to a high-tech rapid-prototyping environment of a Fabrication Laboratory as part of a FabKids experience. This project must be viewed in the context of a global shortage of key skills placing a higher priority on the initiation and development of a pipeline to attract youth into science, engineering and technology careers. Creativity and innovation feature high on the skills agenda but more importantly preliminary results indicate that learners from a broad range of schools were able to operate effectively in this post constructivist environment. Participants had to apply their knowledge, skill, attitudes and values in order to produce a solution to the challenges provided. The fundamentals of the design process of investigate, design, make, evaluate and communicate were emphasized where the FabKids had to draw on their own collective knowledge using a range of technologies available to them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The object of research is the process of interaction between science and production on the basis of the development of FabLab in Ukraine, the subject is the theoretical and applied bases of the formation and development of FabLab. During the processing of the research problems, the authors applied the methods and approaches: a systematic approach, methods of grouping and generalization, the method of retrospecting, methods of analysis and synthesis. The prerequisites for the emergence and spread of FabLab in the world are considered, a retrospective analysis of their development is carried out and the current state is assessed. The principles of creating FabLab are studied (requirements for the organizational structure of laboratories, management approaches, specific features of production and training activities, commercial and non-commercial functioning models, legal aspects, definition of a set of tools and tools for invention, features of FabLab created on the basis of universities, etc.). The problems of formation and reasonable prospects for the development of FabLab in Ukraine are analyzed. In particular, FabLab is considered as important elements of the innovation infrastructure of the region, designed to provide answers in the early stages of innovation. From such positions in the work, the possibilities that FabLab in Ukraine can provide are investigated. First, to promote a balanced solution of the problem of creating new jobs in the region, creating new innovative structures. Secondly, to organize the space where innovative products are generated, embodied in prototypes and tested that becomes the basis for business development on innovative principles. Thirdly, to increase the level of training of future specialists through the use of unique resources FabLab. Fourth, to promote the growth of the level of successful employment of students, interest and involvement of schoolchildren in the choice of engineering specialties, stimulation of youth entrepreneurship, and the like. Based on the results of the analysis of macroeconomic indicators, the work substantiates the role of FabLab in Ukraine in the context of the challenges of the modern technological world in revising traditional approaches in production, management and other areas of activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• An instrumentation and measurement course in the Smart Manufacturing context. • Active Learning methodologies: Cooperative Project-Based and Scenario-Base. • A "learning small enterprise" integrated with an academic FabLab. • A case study at University of Naples Federico II. A multidisciplinary instrumentation and measurement course, for students in Information Communications Technology engineering, was conceived for facing the challenges of the fourth industrial revolution. The course is based on a "learning small enterprise" integrated with an academic FabLab, by exploiting Active Learning methodologies, in particular Cooperative Project-Based and Scenario-Based. Education activity is based on the model of (i) "learning factories" focused on process innovation, and (ii) small enterprises of the fourth industrial revolution, exploiting Internet of Things (IoT) and Additive Manufacturing technologies. A case study at University of Naples Federico II on the course "Instrumentation and Measurement for Smart Industry", as well as on the correspondingly germinated academic Fablab, is presented. The students proved to be involved in the proposal and consider as relevant the impact of this experience on their competences after 6–36 months. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]