One of the biggest challenges we’ve had this semester is simply figuring out where we’re going to make our installations!  Our process involves not only prototyping and models, but also creating a final fabrication and installation, and the ETC shop unfortunately doesn’t have the space, materials, or machines we need to complete them.  Luckily, Elwin reached out to a number of fabrication facilities on campus, and we got a chance to visit one, called the ArtFab!  It’s part of the School of Art at Carnegie Mellon, and they have a great array of machines and facilities to help us out!

Based on a lot of our materials research so far, we’re looking at doing some really interesting things and push ourselves with innovative materials in order to set our pieces apart and really show our skills and design innovation.  The only problem with doing a lot of that is having the facilities to work with such new materials.

We met with Ali Momeny and Fran Flaherty in their studios and they showed us around, and yes, I will admit I let slip one or two squeals of excitement!   We checked out their CNC router, electronics workshop, woodshop, printing facilities, 3D scanner, 3D printer, fabric printer, and laser cutters, all of which could easily become a part of our project.  A personal goal for me is to make sure that conductive textiles make their way into our prototypes, if not our final fabrications (haha! fabric-ations :D), so it was especially exciting to see the plethora of different ways we can make it happen.  From screenprinting with conductive paint or acid on metal to lasercutting conductive fabric or metals for our own custom PCBs, there are so many different methods to fabricate our ideas.

Take a look at some photos of their awesome facility!