Published Monday 4 April 2016 at 14:14
A pop up version of Blackburn’s creative, digital and technological facility called the Making Rooms is set to open in the town centre.
The pop up due to open in early June will provide a taster for the main facility and will feature a selection of equipment that will be in The Making Rooms albeit on a smaller scale.
Set to open later this year, The Making Rooms will see the renovation of the former Bentleys Café Bar in Exchange Street into a three story centre for technological, creative and digital exploration.
It will feature artist studios, flexible workspaces, a café, exhibition space and areas for workshops.
Central to the project will be Lancashire’s first Fab Lab where members of the public can develop new products and artworks using state of the art machinery such as 3D printers and laser cutters.
The project funded by Arts Council England, Blackburn with Darwen Council and the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership is being headed by Dr Eddie Kirkby who was previously at the Manchester-based Manufacturing Institute.
While at the Manufacturing Institute he helped play a pivotal role in bringing the idea of the Fab Lab to the UK from the US where they were developed.
Dr. Kirkby who has a PHD in optical fibre communication says the pop up, which will be in the former Rebound bookshop at 59-61 King William Street will be a fantastic introduction to The Making Rooms.
“They’ll be lots of people that are familiar with the equipment we’ll have but many more who won’t be and this is a perfect opportunity for them to give some of this amazing machinery a try.
“Positioned on the high street we hope people will be encouraged to just drop in and won’t feel like this isn’t something for them.
“We’ll have everything from Lego Robotics to 3D printers that can do detailed work like making casts for jewellery so there really will be something for all ages and all experience levels.”
Also on offer for people to use will be Raspberry Pis which are a form of basic computer that visitors can use to learn electronics and programming, arduinos for learning basic electronics and vinyl cutters that can be used to make signs.
It is intended that the pop up will open Tuesday to Saturday and much like the main facility when it opens will offer workshops, activities and inductions.
Dr Kirkby added: “I hope as many people as possible will come along and use this opportunity to explore what this equipment is capable of and how they can use it for both personal and professional projects when The Making Rooms opens.”
Currently a manager for the Fab Lab is being sought who will run the service day to day, lead workshops and be on hand for technical advice.