Editing Fab lab (section)

{{Short description|Small-scale workshop for digital fabrication}}
{{For|the British children's television series|Fab Lab}}

[[File:Amsterdam Fab Lab at The Waag Society.JPG|thumb|right|Amsterdam Fab Lab at [[Waag, Amsterdam|The Waag Society]], 2009.]]

A '''fab lab''' ('''''fabrication laboratory''''') is a small-scale [[workshop]] offering (personal) [[digital fabrication]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.openp2pdesign.org/projects/past-projects/report-business-models-for-open-hardware-fab-labs-diy-craft/business-models-for-fab-labs/ |website=openp2pdesign.org |title=Business Models for Fab Labs |first=Massimo |last=Menichinelli |date=23 March 2011}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Troxler |first=Peter |chapter=Libraries of the Peer Production Era |editor1-last=van Abel |editor1-first=Bas |editor2-last=Evers |editor2-first=Lucas |editor3-last=Klaassen |editor3-first=Roel |editor4-last=Troxler |editor-first4=Peter |title=Open Design Now. Why Design Cannot Remain Exclusive |publisher=[[Bis Publishers]] |year=2011 |isbn=978-90-6369-259-9 |chapter-url=http://opendesignnow.org/index.php/article/libraries-of-the-peer-production-era-peter-troxler/}}</ref>

A fab lab is typically equipped with an array of flexible computer-controlled tools that cover several different length scales and various materials, with the aim to make "almost anything".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gershenfeld |first=Neil A. |author-link=Neil Gershenfeld |title=Fab: the coming revolution on your desktop—from personal computers to personal fabrication |year=2005 |publisher=Basic Books |location=New York |isbn=0-465-02745-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/fabcomingrevolut00gers}}</ref> This includes [[Prototype|prototyping]] and [[technology]]-enabled products generally perceived as limited to [[mass production]].

While fab labs have yet to compete with mass production and its associated [[economies of scale]] in fabricating widely distributed products, they have already shown the potential to empower individuals to create smart devices for themselves. These devices can be tailored to local or personal needs in ways that are not practical or economical using mass production.

The fab lab movement is closely aligned with the [[Do it yourself|DIY]] movement, [[open-source hardware]], [[maker culture]], and the [[free and open-source]] movement, and shares philosophy as well as technology with them.