Q Life Magazine Q Magazine December 2018 | Page 31
Innovate & Inspire |
F
ab Lab (short for Digital
Fabrication Laboratory) turns
ideas into reality using cutting-edge
technology and shared knowledge.
Fab Lab aims to spread awareness
about the growing local capabilities
available in Qatar through
prototyping using 3D printing and
other new technologies.
At the heart of this future-looking
venture is a small-scale workshop
which provides a supportive
environment for creativity and aims
to enable everyone, from young
people to seasoned entrepreneurs,
to advance their ideas and turn
them into projects. Fab Lab provides
the latest tools, equipment, and
manual and digital manufacturing
“We equip and empower
the young generation with
a new skill-set to foster
innovation and their
ability to make things.”
- Nayef Al Ibrahim
devices, helping reduce the costs of
invention.
It is innovation in action. ‘We open
the space for everyone, whether they
are technology experts or not,’ says
Robert Garita, Fab Lab Manager.
‘You can come here and develop
your ideas, using different techniques
and machines. You can prototype
something and move to the next
stage of innovation. We are working
closely with entrepreneurs, private
companies, and students alike.’
He explains: ‘If you have an idea
and you want to get it to market, you
have to first prototype it. Then you
can go to the market, validate your
idea, and turn this into a business.’
He shows an example of a prototype
of jewellery, holding up an eye-
catching Arabic ring to catch the
light. Its fine detail and intricate
design looks as if it were the product
of a traditional artisan, and yet it
has been made by a 3D printer at
Fab Lab from resin.
Designers came to Fab Lab with an
idea for the ring, which they needed
to refine. ‘We took the 3D model,
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