Rolling notes:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Q7uwQXVkV9irkpw3pxbLTTdfDb3qDPqjJyaY5m01-1U/edit?usp=drivesdk
Technician meeting
17/05/2024Present techs
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Karin (ceramics)
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Petra (wood lathe)
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Duncan (wood lathe)
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Sam (3d)
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David (3d)
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Federico (cnc)
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Christian (cnc)
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Amit (cnc)
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Laura (electronics)
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Roman (metal)
scribe: Petra
Agenda
Parameters for being and becoming a technician at SLMS(drafting)
Updates from each area
Parameters for being and becoming a technician at SLMS
Meeting started with brainstorming what are the topics to discuss in our Technician capacity in order to jointly improve our areas and inform members about what is happening in our areas.
The understood structure of responsibility is that the historically first techs are self-selected, often are those who put over 100+ hours of their time into setting up their areas and bring at least a minimum competence level of skill in ensuring Health and Safety, know-how and positive attitude to encouraging members to use the area. Those techs tend to be respected and referred to as main-techs as we as a community generally value people stepping up and volunteering their time. Starting an area requires prior discussions, sometimes it can take years of the topic being brought up by members at Members meetings in order to gather consensus momentum and resources to get things. If a tech becomes a director they cease to be involved in running the area, but are always welcome to support in the boundary of their role (if a new area or tools needs risk assessment, area does not have any techs etc.)
What are the requirements of a member becoming a technician?
Transparent process to become one.
This is a volunteering role with clear requirements regarding commitment to help other members to use the area
One needs to be active, efficient, proficient and be able to grow in the role.
Core competency is an outstanding commitment to H&S and have a minimal competency of the area to use tools and oversee safe usage, maintenance and be able to communicate that.
It has been the culture of Makerspace to uphold mutual trust between technicians and directors and maintain a boundary based on trust.
Established areas have existing techs who vote a for a new technician. It is expected that signed-off technicians of an area have an established trust of directors and in this case directors provide an official sign-off exercising trust in areas expertise.
Directors are expected to take on that role if an area has no techs available for voting in new ones.
Technician has to be a member, who underwent a members induction and a subsequent technicians induction by current technicians of the area.
This process should not be exclusionary and has to be transparent.
How to start and area
I. Members
Meeting is the first point of gathering interest, other members with an expertise. It can take several years to introduce an area to SLMS, usually based on general interest, H&S and practicality - for example ceramics has been mentioned on MM since 2019, but enough practical interest was gathered in 2022.
Updates from each area
Metal area
◦ is open
◦ fully working
◦ new lathe has to be tuned and moved to place
◦ big spotwelder works
◦ some wiring needs to be done and Stefano is working on it as a qualified electrician
Extraction is still yet to be sorted out, it is being held by perceived personality contest of ex-techs and hoping to find a reasonable and cheap solution with help of new techs
Metal are needs at least 4 more dedicatedmembers to be able to run smoothly
Entry level tasks that can help members to contribute to shutter access
Advanced tasks that can be explained by Roman
Plasma cutter ?
Non-wifi connected lights (H&S concern)
Dedicated lights for welding and lather
Shelves
Metal: no lathe
and 3-4m
welding: Dario
once am
all else: 7 people
subscribed
CNC
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area is going well and being maintained by Amit, Federico and
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inductions
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reminders to members induction for large CNC has to be requested individually
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Another cheat sheet for Large CNC is being made
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update
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rebuilding enclosure for extraction and pc
☐ we need more inductors
- Amit happy to run Fridays inductor inductions
Personal, helpful to get shutter access.
General
IT IS OPEN!
Metal area is a great place to build jigs for sharpening etc, it is not only an area for fixing
3D
- successful
pledge drive
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new resin printer
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tool control
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issue:
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people get overconfident
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high usage
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people add stickers -> we don’t need stickers
We aim to establish the area in a functional way so members can just show up and 3D print a thing, down the line would love to have 3d printing experimental machine
Some people had to be uninducted
- enclosure
for resin printing
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AIC
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carbon filters
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more ventilation
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opening blast gates!!
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it would be nice to have a system when everything kicks on
Textiles -Maz
◦ once a month a textile event
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4 textiles
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Tracy D
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sewing machine has a video at an induction
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fabric scissors not to be
used on paper
- not that good
☐ more scissors
☐ people sharpening
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Maz got chalk pens and paid for it from their own pocket
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sock knitter
ISSUE
- people sit there with laptops not realisign people coming to use textiles likely leave when they see the space full
☐ textiles section needs to be added to booking calendar
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stashes of staff
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top shelf is for personal projects
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everything at the bottom is free to use
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old singer needs restoring
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someone used the bits cannibalise thread holder
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tufting machine needs it’s own spool hodler
☆
◦ knitting machine is top shelf H&S concern
organising/inventory of cupboards
WOOD LATHE
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no risk assessment for Tormek and Duncan is writing it altogether with tools page
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Petra some is running regular inductions at the moment
◦ storage needs upgrading
◦ Tripp is making handles
• domino-induction to make shelves under tormek
◦ extraction - can be fabricated in the space
◦ tool control should go in @systems and @Mbg working on ti
Electronics
Has 2 techs : Laura and Jem
There had been a historical personality clash/power struggle perceived by everyone in the meeting which is distractign and useless
2 techs that
maintain
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more techs
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clarity
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Andrea who is perceived as an institution left the technician role
☐ immediate need for more techs - please contact Laura and Jem if you are interested
Currently Laura and Jem would like to make a plan for the future of the area
The immediate necessity is for the area to be upheld to a better H&S
Idea of basic inductions ( Petra can volunteer to run those)
Arduino night can restart if there is a better boundary between directors enthusing about the area a bit too enthusiastically stepping on technicians toes
☐ Laura needs a credit card
Arduino night
◦ organisation
◦ video induction
◦ delegation
◦ pushing it
together
◦
CERAMICS
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is open!
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soft opening
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inducting informally, short induction needed and Karin is happy to do it
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immediate action is standardise materials
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extrabox for recycling
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limited Storage
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RISK ASSESMENT to be done and kiln is not on the cards at the moment
Next meeting:
3rd Friday of every month
21/6/2024
Duncan: scribe