In order to introduce more and more Hamburg residents to the possibilities of local digital manufacturing, Fab City Hamburg attaches great importance to education and knowledge transfer. That is why we as an association have developed a workshop program. The workshops are mainly held in the workshops and Fab Labs. They are aimed at all interested people, whether beginners, advanced makers or companies and organizations. Fab City Hamburg e.V. itself organizes the workshops, for example on building the OpenLab Starter Kit or on other new product ideas.
What are Build Workshops?
Our hands on workshop formats
The following workshop formats have been organized and conducted to date. They are constantly being developed further. Dates are announced at Events.
OpenLab Starter Kit - Desktop 3D-Printer Build Workshop
With various organizations in and around Hamburg, open source hardware 3D printers were built in a 2-day workshop with up to 8 participants. Under the guidance of our instructors and with the help of a step-by-step guide (Assembly Guideline), the participants independently assembled the provided materials and components into a functional 3D printer. In the process, background knowledge on the topic of open source hardware, circular economy and 3D printing and its areas of application was also imparted. The OpenLab Starter Kit is being developed as part of the Fab City dtec.bw project under the leadership of the New Production Institute.
Participating organizations included schools and social institutions as well as the Hamburg Chamber of Crafts and the Bücherhallen, which are now using the 3D printer.
Precious Plastic Recycling Workshop
The MOTTE in Hamburg-Ottensen organized together with Precious Plastic Lübeck and Fab City Hamburg an exciting recycling project for all interested people. In addition to an open exchange on the topic of the plastic crisis, there was the possibility to shred one’s own plastic waste as well as to sort it by type. With the help of posters, the characteristics of the plastic types could be tested. For example, the participants tested the floatability in alcohol, water, glycerine and vegetable oil. If the result could not be determined precisely, a scanner was available. This provided the exact grade via infrared rays.
Then, in the MOTTE courtyard, there was the Injection Workspace, which used a machine that melts plastic flakes and pours them into new products. Popular new product shapes included snap hooks, flower pots and buttons. The colorful products were available for participants to take home.
Maslow CNC Mill Build Workshops with companies
The Maslow CNC workshop served to schools and test open-source-based digital manufacturing and local circular economy in companies, and to gain experience on how to establish and further develop successful models for the years to come. Furthermore, each additional one of these machines leads to more and more people in Hamburg having access to local production systems. A functional CNC milling machine was built in 3 days.
The workshop was designed and conducted together with Regenholz and the IT-Kollektiv.
The workshop offer of Fab City Hamburg is constantly being expanded. Be curious!
INTERFACER Massive Build Workshops
As part of the INTERFACER project, a free workshop series on sustainability, open source principles and production techniques was held from January to March 2023.
The hands-on workshops were conducted in collaboration with local associations and companies from the Fab City network. For research, they serve the further development of open source hardware documentation and the use of the “Fab City Operation System”.
More information is available on the INTERFACER website. https://www.interfacerproject.eu/news/buildworkshops/
Project funding
The Fab City Build Workshops were funded by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Innovation of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg.
The INTERFACER Massive Build Workshops were supported by EU funds.
