BUDDING entrepreneurs in Ellesmere Port will soon have the tools to make their ideas a reality after funding was secured for a Fab Lab in the town.
Cheshire West and Chester Council and the Ellesmere Port Development Board have secured money to create the facilities which will give residents access to cutting-edge technology.
The brainchild of renowned scientist and inventor professor Neil Gershenfeld, Fab Labs are fully kitted-out workshops with digital fabrication technology offering everyone in the community – from small children and community groups to entrepreneurs and businesses – the capability to turn ideas into reality.
Using state-of-the-art digital manufacturing technology including design software, a 3D printer, a 3D router and laser cutter, the Ellesmere Port Fab Lab will support production ideas from inception to prototype.
The lab will have the capabilities to assist in the production of a range of areas from 3D designs, drawings and functional pre-production prototypes, electronics, games, 3D scale models and signage using various materials to exhibition materials, models, stands, production moulds, bespoke furniture and physical art installations.
Schools can also benefit from days designed to spark creativity and innovation across various subjects within the national curriculum away from the boundaries of the classroom.
Cllr Herbert Manley, executive member for prosperity, said: “I am really delighted that Ellesmere Port, with its history in industry, will now be placed firmly at the forefront of cutting-edge technology and entrepreneurial spirit.
“The lab will become a community inventors’ workshop where new products can be built with hi-tech equipment and machinery. This access will allow users to create just about anything.
“And the benefits don’t stop there, enabling schoolchildren to access the Fab Lab will help them to think about the viability of their ideas and expand and test them – potentially creating entrepreneurs of the future.”
The lab will be part of a global network of more than 100 similar facilities, linked virtually to allow users to collaborate on projects with others as far afield as Pretoria, Ghana and Afghanistan. The Ellesmere Port lab will be the third of its kind in the UK, following the successful establishment of Fab Labs in Manchester and Airedale.
The council worked with local partners including The Manufacturing Institute, Andrew Miller MP, the Ellesmere Port Development Board, the University of Chester, West Cheshire College, Ellesmere Port Boost, and TTE Training to bring the bid to fruition.
Andrew Miller MP, chairman of the House of Commons Science and Technology Select Committee, said: “I have long been a supporter of these developments and look forward to seeing real benefits for both business and young people here in Ellesmere Port.”
