May 15,
2017, Cairo – Students at The American University in Cairo (AUC) recently launched
a FabLab, an engineering workshop or laboratory space equipped with tools and
machines for digital fabrication. For two years, mechanical engineering majors
and FabLab founders, Mohamed Ragab and Abdel Rahman Shalaby dedicated
themselves to gathering funding for the opening of the lab at the University and
discussing logistics with different members of the community.
The
project is part of the Mechanical Engineering Association (MEA) and the lab
itself is entirely student-run, overseen by a technical team of mechanical
engineering students. The team is responsible for monitoring usage of the
lab, handling maintenance of the machines and training newcomers on how to properly
operate all tools and machines. Each visitor to the FabLab must complete
certain sets of hours in order to be able to use the machines without team
supervision.
This
addition to the campus can be a useful supplement to the classroom experience
for AUC students. “The FabLab expands and provides many opportunities,” said
Ragab. “You never know what someone can come in and create. This will increase
creativity and extend the boundaries of thinking when it comes to designing and
discovering new processes.”
All
FabLabs around the world share designs and documentation for their projects,
allowing other labs to download materials and research how to conduct their own
projects.
As a
part of the accredited FabLab community, every lab is required to complete one
major project every six months. “The most famous projects that are undertaken
by all FabLabs at least in the first year are called ‘RepRap’,” said Ragab,
explaining that the ‘RepRap’ project involves the technical team replicating a
machine already in the lab. “Machines often get overwhelmed when FabLabs first
open, since the space draws many people very quickly. Replicating one of the
machines expands the capacity of the lab. It may not produce the same quality,
but it can help.”
What remains is to attain accreditation by MIT,
home to the first FabLab. In order to achieve this, the FabLab team at AUC will
need to obtain two more of the necessary machines. Accreditation will allow AUC
entrance into the FabLab community, an invitation to the annual conference held
in a different city around the world as well as access to a course titled How
to Make Almost Anything. “We think this course could
be very useful at AUC,” explained Ragab. “The course basically traces the
entire thought-process behind creating something and rapid prototyping,
detailing the cycle of designing, implementing and redesigning to make
corrections.”
The
FabLab is a non-for-profit entity. While the team does need to charge for use
of the space, all money is poured back into the lab and used to buy materials
and support projects. The lab has already begun operating, opening its doors to
several students already making use of the machines for their courses and
theses.
A
shared passion for mechanical engineering is what brought the two student managers
together. “When we met each other, Abdel Rahman was working at FabLab Egypt in
Dokki,” recalled Ragab. “We got to know each other through our mechanical
engineering interests and considered the idea of developing a FabLab at AUC for
some time.”
The biggest
challenges for Shalaby and Ragab were securing funding and finding a space. “I
remember we were originally given a three-minute meeting with a group of
professors to make our proposal,” shared Ragab. “We ended up staying for more
than an hour, answering questions and discussing plans. They showed a lot of
support for our ideas. This support from the University and faculty was
essential in making the FabLab a reality.”
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The American University in Cairo (AUC) was
founded in 1919 and is major contributor to the social, intellectual and
cultural life of the Arab Region. It is a vital bridge between East and West,
linking Egypt and the region to the world through scholarly research,
partnerships with academic and research institutions, and study abroad
programs. An independent, nonprofit, apolitical, non-sectarian and equal opportunity
institution, AUC is fully accredited in Egypt and the United States