Survey: What does it cost annually to run a maker's space / fablab?

[Bonnie Nishihara]

The seed money to get our tinkering lab and program started is almost gone. As I ponder what the annual costs of running our lab will be into the future, I would love some data. I created a Google Forms survey with four questions on this topic. The survey is anonymous and the results will be open for all to view. I thought this would be a useful tool, not only for me, but for many. Please take a few moments to contribute:

http://goo.gl/forms/wws99avoIA

Hope everyone is well,

Bonnie

[Tami Brass]

Please share your findings. We are just starting year two of our K-5 space and are in the process of planning one for our middle school. We aren't advanced enough to know annual costs, but we're learning that equipment is requiring more maintenance than vendors have seen in the past (see discussion about laser cutters earlier this month - replacement of filters 2-3x more frequently, replacement of laser after 2 or so years, not the 7 we were told). We're also seeing popular items wear out more quickly than anticipated - LittleBits kids becoming demagnetized, for example. 

Pieces we're looking at:

• Maintenance of big equipment - laser cutter, 3d printers
  
• Consumables - wood, paper, cardboard (recycled/reclaimed only gets you so far with large groups)
• Staffing - for instruction, supervision, and support
• Replacement cycle on equipment with little history
• Acquisition funds for new items
• Requesting/managing/storing donated items and equipment
• Ongoing professional development for faculty

I'm really grateful so many contributors to this group are experienced in these spaces; trying to determine a realistic budget for our spaces has been a real challenge!

[Clint Johns]

This is a challenging topic to tackle. Your question is highly dependent on staffing, budgetary constraints, and scope of projects you are willing to support. Are your staff skilled to perform repairs or do you need to contract a vendor for regular maintenance? Are you allowed to buy refurbished/used tools from ebay or do you have to buy brand new from that product's website? Do you have to have all of the skills in house or can you bring in consultants / contractors for specialty projects? Do you focus primarily on one form of making or several? Each tool you use has a different maintenance cycle and expected life span.

Unfortunately, there is no cookie cutter answer - only more questions as you progress in your understanding of your skills, your colleagues' skills, your students' skills, and what types of projects you want to have happen organically vs plan programmatically (like an annual robotics competition).

When you dream and think bigger, your program will grow accordingly, and your questions will become richer and more complex to answer... which is a GOOD problem to have :)

-Clint Johns
Resident Tinkerer of the DREAM Lab
Creative Inquiry Department
Sacred Heart Prep, CA

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[Maggie]

I would also love to see the data you collect. Just seeing how much and on what others spend annually would be a huge help!

[Bonnie Nishihara]

Thanks to those of you who completed the survey so far. We have had a few people respond. The more, the merrier. Anyone who responded was directed to the results. Here is a link to the results for anyone to view:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Gc0EPC0vnrIY-mtSYd1DGZ_2mEamDFI-0EWrsjRswHk/edit?usp=sharing

-Bonnie