Fablab Lucerne – University of Applied Sciences

By Peter Troxler Simone Schweikert, Romy Bohnenblust

Fablab Lucerne has attracted funding from one of the major Swiss educational and
research foundations, GEBERT RÜF STIFTUNG. The foundation finances and supports
educational and research projects with outstanding pioneering potential. It is not
intended as a source of funding for projects that aim to optimize existing approaches
following the “faster, higher, better, more precise” mode. Sought are innovative projects
of high relevance and scientific quality. This is ensured by the following basic criteria:
effectiveness, transfer potential, originality and interdisciplinary collaboration.

Fablab Lucerne was one of five winning projects that attracted funding in a competitive
call to which 54 proposals were submitted. GEBERT RÜF STIFTUNG said “We are pleased
that the University of Applied Sciences Lucerne is going to set up the first Fablab in
Central Switzerland, based on a proven international model – a Fablab that promises to
become a fruitful meeting place with an excellent innovation atmosphere for young
people, students, researchers, start-ups, SMEs, etc.”

This is certainly yet another proof of how convincing the Fablab idea is. Also, we believe,
that how we pitched the project helped to make the idea relevant for a country such as
Switzerland. That’s why we want to share this presentation with the wider Fablab
community. Feel free to borrow from it and let the Fablab network grow.

Fablab Lucerne aims to implement the Fablab model for the first time in Switzerland. The
project will develop a customized Fablab Business Model for the innovation system
Central Switzerland. After a test phase and an evaluation the Fablab will go into normal
operation. Lucerne will be a pioneer to stimulate and support Fablabs elsewhere in
Switzerland.
A Fablab is a place “to make (almost) anything” (Gershenfeld). It is equipped with digital
fabrication machines (e.g. laser cutter, 3D router). Technology is important as an
enabler. A Fablab works on the principle of “open doors” (analogous to the open source
movement). It has a true educational orientation: “Do it yourself” is key at the Fablab.
Users actively explore the contents, technologies and possibilities of the Lab themselves
at their own pace. This is crucial to be able to live and understand visions and projections
of the future that become possible through the Fablab.

The Fablab is open for everybody: youth, students, researchers, entrepreneurs, starting
businesses, small and medium enterprises and of course university faculty. They all get
support from Fablab coaches and from the international Fablab community. These highly
competent real and virtual partners and the user-friendly, affordable standard machinery
are the key differentiators to the expensive high-tech labs universities and research
centres are so proud of.

Fablabs succeed in building the bridges between the engineers of high-tech fabrication
and other actors who tend to be rather technology averse. In a Fablab people are at the
centre and their desire to design their future. A Fablab supports inventive-creative and
aesthetic processes that are so important in research and development.

A Fablab attracts actors from companies and the public at large in a much wider range
that universities are used to. It is a new combination of the university’s core task of
education with an innovative concept so it opens up new potentials for universities. At
the same time it promises a degree of productivity, which is highly relevant for
competitiveness and wealth of Switzerland. A Fablab can attract women to engineering
studies, and it can convince students in arts and humanities of the possibilities to realize
their ideas with the help of technology.

Switzerland as innovation world champion has quite some potential for improvement
when it comes to knowledge and technology transfer, according to various studies.
Fablab wants to tap into this potential. The traditionally sharp demarcation between
teaching, professional development, applied research, and services become less
relevant. We see this as a positive side effect, since innovation always stems from the
creative destruction of current boundaries.

All over the world Fablabs have been established at 35 locations in 12 countries. Fablabs
work in Boston’s inner city, Amsterdam’s creative quarters, in northerly Norway, in South
Africa, in rural India or in Afghanistan. Establishing a Fablab at the University of Applied
Sciences gives us access to this international, successful network. The diversity of the
Fablab network offers plenty of inspiration how to conceptualize and shape co-operation
between important innovation actors who so fare have been acting separately.

Response to the funding criteria of originality, effectiveness, transfer

potential, and interdisciplinary collaboration

Originality. The Fablab model is new for Switzerland. Innovative products are developed
on the basis of rapid prototyping at R&D departments of privately owned companies or at
laboratories of universities and research institutes. Only a small group of experts today
has the possibility to produce prototypes in short time and using simple means. Fablab
practices democratization and demystification of new technologies following some of the
most important trends of the 21st century:

Open source: knowledge about and access to means and methods of production are not
any more reserved for a small in-group but are available for everybody.

Open learning in communities: users can build their expertise around the use of these
means and methods of production in open, real and virtual communities rather than in
closed training settings. The Fablab is a nucleus for communities of practice that allow all
their members to develop mastery, particularly if they share the knowledge and
experience they acquire with other members of the community.

Open organisational formats: Fablabs typically are not purely private or purely public
organisations but they build on public private partnerships.

Effectiveness. The Fablab model has proven its effectiveness as a driver of regional
innovation since 2005 at 35 locations in 12 countries. All the Fablabs succeeded in
building bridges between highly qualified experts in technology, design, management or
education and a wide range of interested partners – from education (schools,
universities, vocational schools, etc.), business (SMEs, entrepreneurs, designers,
architects, etc.), arts and culture (artists, musea, non-profit organisations, etc.). The
Fablab builds on social interaction. In projects, it brings together academics and
practitioners on equal level. It allows academic researchers to interact directly with non-
academics and vice versa. Additionally, the Fablab counters two contradictory trends
that are dangerous for Switzerland. On the one hand, the Fablab is well suited to reach
people who became not any more or not at all interested in technology during the past
years, e.g. young men who rather study business administration or law instead of
technology, or young women who still are not too interested in engineering even if in
these jobs require more brain than physical work these days. Die-hard techies, on the
other hand, are systematically encouraged to make use of the latest insights of creativity
and innovation research: In the Fablab, there is the stimulating power of a diverse
community (power of diversity), there is the need to interact with the users of a new
technology at an early stage because they are present at a Fablab from the start, and
there is the open invitation to use methods and procedures that have been proven
successful in R&D processes.

Transfer potential. Fablabs have proven successful all over the world; they have
spread quickly and sustainably. Every Fablab builds on the experience of the other labs.
Within the network of Fablabs, the exchange on business model, programs, and
networking is at least as important as technical issues. The project Fablab Lucerne will
develop, test, evaluate and implement a business model that is suitable for the
innovation system Central Switzerland and brings together as main actors the University
of Applied Sciences, intermediaries, companies and the wider public. This business model
will be made available to anybody who wants to set up a Fablab. Fablab Lucerne will be
strongly present with core target groups through the project partners ITZ and SPS. ITZ
(Innovation Transfer Central Switzerland) is an intermediary that is well connected to
other Universities of Applied Science through its membership in national technology
transfer consortia. SPS (Swiss Productivity Foundation) has a strong network of Swiss
companies and entrepreneurs. The University of Applied Sciences will publicize the
potential of Fablab in research, teaching, and technology transfer in its network of
relevant academic communities.

Interdisciplinary collaboration. Fablabs use the power of diversity and the

disciplinary mastery of their academics. The first Fablab was set up at the well-known
MIT’s interdisciplinary Center for Bits and Atoms, the second one in Boston’s inner city.
They serve youth, tinkerers, inventors as well as companies and students. At the
University of Applied Sciences Lucerne the Fablab can be used by all disciplines in
teaching, professional development, applied research and research services. Fablab is
part of the interdisciplinary CreaLab. This guarantees that the Fablab business model will
include formats of interdisciplinary collaboration.

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