WHAT IS A FAB LAB
You can make almost anything
FAB LAB ATHENS is an active node of the Digital Fabrication Laboratories network Fab Labs, that are a platform for cooperation between people and organizations from different countries around the world.
Fab labs are conceived and designed to encourage the idea that anyone can fabricate/make anything anywhere in the world by sharing technological and social knowledge and by using machines of digital manufacturing.
The project emerged from a program launched by The Center for Bits and Atoms (CBA) of MIT and is led by physicist Neil Gershenfeld (director of CBA). The project of Fab Labs has extended from laboratories in downtown Boston to rural India, South Africa, Norway, Spain, Afghanistan, Kenya and more. All Fab Labs work in coordination through the Internet and a video conference network, and they meet annually in a global event.
The Fab Lab programme explores how the content of information relates to physical representation.
The Fab Labs are laboratories of personal digital fabrication in which it is possible to make almost anything, from a computer measuring 1 cm by 1 cm to an intelligent house. These labs are distributed in various parts of the world and connected to each other by way of the Internet and video conferencing, which allows the sharing of experiences and with it the creation of a network of distributed knowledge.
The Fab Labs use advanced techniques and technologies which are being made accessible to everyone. They are equipped with state-of-the-art equipment such as laser cutters, 3-dimensional printers, and milling machines as well as electronic components.
FAB LAB ATHENS is a platform for the development of Digital Fabrication Technologies.
Fab Lab Athens explores how Digital Fabrication, Information and Communication Technologies applied in different disciplines can create more efficient economic, social, productive and education models in the different local contexts of the region of Greece as well as outside Greece.
FAB LAB ATHENS objectives are:
/to test and promote new economic, social and educational models in the local context of Greece and in the global scenario of the 3rd Industrial Revolution and the crisis societies
/to organize activities, research and educational programs related with Science fields of production, designing and communication (New Materialities/Internet of Things,/Automated Construction/Real-time Data/Smart Cities/The Science of DIY,/Collective Innovation/Open Source Design and more)
/to create an Open Lab that is accessible to local people, professionals, researchers, students, children and to anybody interested in learning and testing the uses and applications of digital fabrication technologies.
FAB LAB ATHENS project has the following partners:
/The National Technical University of Athens (N.T.U.A.), Hosting Organization
/The TEE (Technical Chamber of Greece)
/The Greek Free / Open Source Software Society (GFOSS) nonprofit organization
/The The P2P FoundationBooklet.