This thesis, based on an ethnographic approach, investigates personal fabrication. Fab Labs or FABrication LABoratories, introduced as facilities where you can make (almost) anything, are small-scale workshops for digital fabrication and rapid-prototyping. Fab Lab that are inscribed in the maker subculture and based upon open design principles and commons-based peer production, first emerged in MIT’s Center for Bits and Atoms in 2001. Since then, many labs have scaled geographically and the present study explores Fab Lab Amsterdam. Fabbing practices are described in depth in three chapters: 1. Fabbing: Personalization and Networking – 2. Materiality of the Maker Revolution – 3. Openness.
Keywords: Fab Lab, open design, personal fabrication, Rapid prototyping, CNC machine tools,3D printing, commons-based peer production, DIY, open source hardware, maker subculture, mass customization, Pro-Ams
Original Title
FABBING PRACTICES- AN ETHNOGRAPHY IN FAB LAB AMSTERDAM
This thesis, based on an ethnographic approach, investigates personal fabrication. Fab Labs or FABrication LABoratories, introduced as facilities where you can make (almost) anything, are sm…