A Double Visit to the FabLab and CDEL
It was pretty crowded at our FabLab yesterday. We had two groups of visitors there at the same time who came to learn about our work.
First, we were visited by a group representing various companies from the electrical and electronics industries. As part of a workshop series organized by the Efficiency Agency NRW, our project #digital.zirkulär.ruhr presented how circular design is the key to sustainable and circular value creation. We began by giving the business leaders a tour of our lab. Afterwards, we presented the recycling line in our Hall 4. Here, we can produce new printable filament from filament scraps, thereby recycling as much material as possible. The group then headed over to our neighboring lab CDEL, where Prof. Dr. Saulo H. Freitas Seabra da Rocha demonstrated how they can e.g. disassemble cordless screwdrivers, amongst other things.
At the same time, the event organized by the German-American Chamber of Commerce began at the FabLab. A delegation of American startups, universities, and economic development organizations wanted to learn from us about the development of the Prosper site, as well as see how HRW supports and promotes young entrepreneurs. The visit was initiated by HRW Startups, which had established contact with the delegation. Prof. Dr. Michael Schäfer presented our funded projects and gave the group a tour of our lab. The 3D-printed basketball and our Quantum Minilab kits generated a lot of excitement within the group. The group was given the opportunity to try things out for themselves and experience firsthand how we strive every day to inspire people to get excited about our projects and work and to motivate them to continue their own education. Following the lab tour, the CDEL took over again and presented its lab.
No matter how diverse the groups are, what industries they come from, or what countries they’re from, we’re always delighted to see that everyone leaves our lab feeling inspired. Both events were great opportunities for networking and exchanging ideas. At the end of the day, we were admittedly a bit exhausted, but grateful that we get to regularly share our work and the FabLab’s vision with others.
