A first attempt to fire a rocket went awry. “Relaunch!” people shouted. Next to a computer-controlled beer brewing system and whirring 3‑D printers, Mayor John DeStefano deployed a glitter-streaming air-powered rocket — and set MakeHaven soaring toward a new horizon.
The celebratory rocket shot through the air, trailing glitter in its wake to mark the official relaunch of MakeHaven, the “hacker space” on State Street.
The rocket flew on Monday afternoon at MakeHaven, which occupies the basement and ground floor of 266 State St. It was the culminating moment of a celebration of a newly renovated workshop for tinkerers and inventors of all stripes.
Click the video to see the rocket fly.
MakeHaven opened its doors over a year ago as a clubhouse-cum-workshop for tech-savvy “makers” and “hackers” — people who like building things, especially electronic or mechanical things. MakeHaven members pay $50 a month for access to tools and to a community of like-minded people. Marcus Notz, president of the MakeHaven board of directors, said the space now has 40 members.
New Haven’s “makerspace” is the local manifestation of a larger “maker” movement. Modern DIY lairs just like MakeHaven have been popping up in cities across the country.
Since it opened, MakeHaven has benefited from support from the city in renovating the space. The Economic Development Department pitched in $16,000 in materials and $3,500 in trainee stipends for participants in the Commission on Equal Opportunities (CEO) Construction Workforce Initiative, which did much of the renovation inside. MakeHaven now has a new kitchen and bathroom, new electrical wiring and ventilation, a renovated basement workshop, and a fresh coat of paint.
On Monday at 4:30 p.m., the place was packed with city officials and MakeHaven enthusiasts. Quinnipiac University Math Professor Karen Bliss (at left in photo) was explaining the automatic beer maker she and other Quinnipiac students and faculty built. The unit comprises a set of stainless-steel vats connected by tubes and controlled by a microprocessor.
It’s made with some pieces printed out of MakeHaven’s 3‑D printers.
“I decided I wanted to work with my students on a real-world problem,” Bliss said. She said she though beer would be a “nice hook” to get students interested. She said so far the machine had produced a pale ale and “very hoppy” IPA.
Before the ceremonial rocket was launched, city development chief Kelly Murphy hailed MakeHaven as an important part of an innovative entrepreneur community that’s been developing in the Ninth Square, where centers of innovation like the Grove and the Grid have taken root. Click here to see her and others’ remarks.
After talking “rapid prototyping” with the mayor, Marcus Notz (pictured) showed off MakeHaven’s new basement …
… which is stocked with donated woodworking and metalworking equipment. He said plans are underway to install a “wet lab” photographic darkroom.
Member Ryan Zaveruha (at right in photo), who lives in Stratford, inspected some laser-engraved wood. He said he’s an electrical engineer, working at Sensor Switch in Wallingford. Hanging out at MakeHaven, he found a couple of talented electrical engineers whom he ended up hiring at Sensor Switch, Zaveruha said.
Upstairs, two 3‑D printers were still whirring away, bringing someone’s ideas into physical reality.