Our Story

The Fayetteville Free Library is excited to offer a new public service—the FFL Fab Lab. What exactly is a fab lab? According to Neil Gershenfeld, the Director of MIT’s Center for Bits and Atoms and author of Fab: the Coming Revolution on Your Desktop-From Personal Computers to Personal Fabrication, a fab lab is “a collection of commercially available machines and parts linked by software and processes developed for making things (Gershenfeld, 12).” At the foundation of the FFL's Fab Lab will be a MakerBot Thing-o-Matic 3D printer, made available to the library through a generous donation from Express Computer Services.

The Impact

Over the past fifty years, the manner in which we process information has changed. New technological developments have changed the way we interact with information, allowing us to become "creators" rather than just "consumers." There are few places that currently provide FREE community access to new, innovative creation technology like 3D printers. The public library provides a safe and accessible space where anyone in the community can interact, understand and develop through use of this technology.The FFL is encouraging local innovation, collaboration, and education through offering this new public service. We are documenting the process so that other libraries across the country can replicate it, making their own free, public access Fab Labs.

What We Need

We are asking for $20,000. This money will go towards purchasing more technology for the FFL Fab Lab (more MakerBot's, a CNC Router, Lazor Cutter, and MAC Lab), ABS plastic for our MakerBot (to help keep this service FREE for the public), as well as bring in experts to give lectures and share their experience. The FFL has already recieved first round approval for a NY State Library Construction Grant for $250,000 to renovate the East wing of the library. We also won an Innovation Award of $10,000 from the Contact Summit on October 20th.  This project is happening now and your support will not only ensure it's success but help us spread the word to other libraries across the country. 

Other Ways You Can Help

Please spread the word! Share this campaign with your friends and family—tweet it, facebook it, G+ it. Be a library hero. Support the future of libraries. Become a Maker.