Their design, based on the Southern Right whale was judged the most original, competing against a dozen entries from FabLabs around the world. The prize wasUS $250, which will be used to buy more tools for the lab.
The team spent three weeks - between their other duties - creating the 90cm long vessel, using the structure of the whale to inform their design and drawing on the lab facilities to create and assemble it.
This year's competition theme was Industrial [r]Evolution, exploring the implications and consequences of digital fabrication for art, business, industry, culture and education. The entry criteria were that the design had to be water-worthy, and had to use at least two FabLab processes in its construction.
The vessel's main components were designed on the computers and then cut from acrylic sheeting on a laser cutter. To allow flexibility and easier transportation, the acrylic pieces were joined using separated strands of box-binding straps. The tail was also woven from this material.
In order for the whale to "swim," long balloons were threaded through holes in the vertical pieces and then inflated to the desired length. Multiple balloons were used to ensure stability in the water.
FabLabs are assisted DIY computer aided design/manufacturing environments equipped to facilitate the development of ideas into prototypes. The Cape Town FabLab is part of the Creativity, Design and Innovation Programme of the CCDI, located at its offices in Cape Town.
The winning entry was donated to the FabLab Groningen, in the northern Netherlands, where staff have put it on display and will continue developing the concept. A second version has been produced and is on display on the fourth floor of the CCDI.
Cilliers said this annual international conference brought together staff and practitioners from the network and beyond. The Waag Society, a Dutch organisation that develops creative technology for social innovation, and acts as an intermediary between the arts, science and the media, hosted it. The network consists of about 48 labs at present, with just as many labs currently being planned.
Access to the FabLab in Cape Town is free to all on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 12.30-4pm and Saturdays from 9am to noon in the CCDI building at 75 Harrington Street in the CBD.
