Partly cloudy skies this evening will become overcast overnight. Low 62F. Winds light and variable..

Partly cloudy skies this evening will become overcast overnight. Low 62F. Winds light and variable.

TANNER MONDOK | HeraldJonathan Richardson, Valley Fab Lab liaison, and Laura Kahl, a Fab Lab special projects manager, use a 3D printer at the Valley Fab Lab inside Laurel Technical Institute in Sharon.

TANNER MONDOK | HeraldVisitors tour the Valley Fab Lab at Laurel Technical Institute in Sharon during an open house Thursday.

TANNER MONDOK | HeraldEvan Abbott, 10, paints a wooden plant stake that was laser engraved at the Valley Fab Lab at LTI in Sharon.

TANNER MONDOK | Herald Local community leaders participate in a ribbon cutting ceremony for the Valley Fab Lab at LTI in Sharon.

TANNER MONDOK | HeraldJonathan Richardson, Valley Fab Lab liaison, and Laura Kahl, a Fab Lab special projects manager, use a 3D printer at the Valley Fab Lab inside Laurel Technical Institute in Sharon.

SHARON — The walls are decorated, the rooms have desks for students, and there’s plenty of machines — two 3D printers, two laser engravers, a fabric printer, a large project printer, and a set of woodworking devices.

Located in Laurel Technical Institute’s building at 200 Sterling Ave. in Sharon which hosts the Shenango Valley Community Connections Collaborative, the Fab Lab has seen limited use during the pandemic, but Thursday afternoon local officials a chance finally opened the lab’s doors to the public, LTI Executive Vice President Doug Decker said.

The Fab Lab — a collaborative effort among Whole Life Services, the Shenango Valley Chamber of Commerce, and the City of Sharon, with LTI managing the space — is a digital fabrication makers’ space to help people and businesses to access supportive technology.

TANNER MONDOK | HeraldEvan Abbott, 10, paints a wooden plant stake that was laser engraved at the Valley Fab Lab at LTI in Sharon.

“We want to develop makers into entrepreneurs,” Decker said.

The Fab Lab can be used by students in LTI’s entrepreneurship business and administration program, but the lab is open to community members as well.

Those interested can sign up for clearance classes, where instructors will train students to use the various machines. Once is qualified to use a machine, participants can go online to reserve time with a machine for a fee, or use the Fab Lab during “flow classes,” which are free and available on a first-come, first-served basis, Decker said.

“So if you wanted to use the CNC machine, you can go online and pay $30 for six hours with the CNC machine,” Decker said. “Or you can come in during a flow class, but if someone’s on the CNC machine, you’re going to have to wait your turn.”

Maggie Horne, director of Gannon University’s Small Business Development Center and chair of the Fab Lab committee, said she was glad to see the collaboration between the organizations that made the Fab Lab possible, and she hopes to see the community take advantage of the Fab Lab’s opportunities for local entrepreneurs.

TANNER MONDOK | HeraldVisitors tour the Valley Fab Lab at Laurel Technical Institute in Sharon during an open house Thursday.

Executive Director Olivia Brown of the Shenango Valley Chamber of Commerce said she thinks the Fab Lab can benefit everyone from small business owners to local organizations, while CEO Cindy Vogan of Whole Life Services said the Fab Lab has helped get those with disabilities involved with the community, something she hopes can continue.

Jake Morgan, a founder of Brohana Men’s Products, said the company used incubator space at the building near the Fab Lab, and he learned to use the lab’s laser engraver for the company’s products as a cheaper alternative to contracting with another company.

Now a coordinator for LTI, Morgan trains others to use the equipment, which not only provides an economic solution for entrepreneurs, but can provide a feeling of satisfaction as well, he said.

TANNER MONDOK | Herald Local community leaders participate in a ribbon cutting ceremony for the Valley Fab Lab at LTI in Sharon.

“It really is novel to come up with an idea, walk into the Fab Lab and come out an hour later holding a prototype in my hand,” Morgan said.

FOR MORE information or to sign up for classes and machine use, visit www.valleyfablab.org.

Like David L. Dye on Facebook or email him at ddye@sharonherald.com.

Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles.

To play the media you will need to either update your browser to a recent version or update your Flash plugin.

Sign up now to get our FREE breaking news coverage delivered right to your inbox.

First Amendment: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.