Sharing Insights: Developing Circular Practices in Makespaces

Sharing Insights at Making Futures Sept 2015

The Circular Makespaces (CMS) project is one of two Level 1 feasibility studies on Future Makespaces in Redistributed Manufacturing, a two-year ESPRC funded research project run by the Royal College of Art in London.

Team:
Grit Hartung – Research Associate, Designer Researcher
Sharon Prendeville – Research Associate, Design Researcher
Erica Purvis – Sustainable Design Engineer
Clare Brass – Co-Investigator, Head of SustainRCA
Ashley Hall – Co-Investigator, Professor of Design Innovation and deputy head of the Innovation Design Engineering programme at the RCA

“Eventually, everything connects – people, ideas, objects. The quality of the connections is the key to quality per se. …” (Eames)

[Abstract] Makespaces have the potential to contribute – through physical and relational goods – to a new economy that is economically, socially and environmentally sustainable. While we presume that Makespaces are intrinsically engaged in a vision for a circular economy, there are few studies that support this. Likewise, anecdotal evidence from managers of such spaces, and their maker networks, suggests many are struggling to sustain themselves economically. While some research has already been undertaken to map out and review the activities and value of Makespaces today, little of this research explores the Makespace communities from a circular economy viewpoint. The current discourse lacks both the overarching theoretical insights and the practical tools, models and frameworks to assist Makespace actors with circular practices. This lack of knowledge sees the Makespace movement risk transferring the negative impacts of our current linear economic model to a redistributed form. In light of this research gap, the overarching aim of this research is to uncover triggers for circular practices to become embedded within Makespaces, thereby informing principles of redistributed manufacturing. The research will take an exploratory approach using contextual mapping to undertake case studies with selected exemplary Makespaces. The case study methodology will combine generative research techniques with design probes. The case studies, as part of the first stages of Future Makespaces in Redistributed Manufacturing (FM RdM) at RCA, will uncover insights on people, ideas and objects for circular practices within exemplary Makespaces. Furthermore it will support systematic understanding on what current circular practices exist, the wider role of Makespaces (and their stakeholders) within a circular economy and redistributed manufacturing. The research will contribute to a wider conversation on embedding circular practices within Makespaces and their role in redistributed manufacturing. The findings will inform the next stages of the FM RdM project and wider context.

1. Clare Brass / Ashley Hall / Grit Hartung / Sharon Prendeville / Erica Purvis

2. Sharing Insights:
Developing Circular Practices in Makespaces
se. …”
Context
What we’ve done
What we’ve learnt
What’s next

3. James Tooze, Hannah Steward, Sharon Baurley
Context

4. Makespaces

5. Various forms of Makespaces
/ Peter Troxler, “Open Design Now’, 2011
/ Nesta: Open dataset of UK Makespaces, 2015

6. Focused area of Makespaces
& selected
/ Peter Troxler, “Open Design Now’, 2011
/ Nesta: Open dataset of UK Makespaces, 2015

7. Risk of adopting the old linear model
in a distributed form – ‘crapjects’

8. What we’ve done
/ thegreatrecovery.org

9. What we’ve done

10. . . . . . . . . .
#Circular
#Stories
What we’ve done

11. #History #Context #Connections #Batch-manufacture
What we’ve done

12. What we’ve done

13. What we’ve done

14. / Nesta Open Dataset User Guide – April 2015
 
What we’ve done

15. What we’ve done

16. What we’ve learnt 1
Lack of considerations in sustainability

17. The concept of sustainability varies and
Makespaces are quite far behind a basic levels
What we’ve learnt 2

18. Choices, such as the selection of materials
and equipment, are guided by bureaucracy
and the need to streamline
What we’ve learnt 3

19. Lack of eco-champions or people to drive
and encourage ‘circular practise’
What we’ve learnt 4

20. Invisibility of issues around
resource use and circularity
What we’ve learnt 5

21. People need easy and quick examples -
at all stages of their process
What we’ve learnt 6

22. #signage #best-machine-practise

People need easy and accessible examples -
at all stages of their process
What we’ve learnt 6

23. The idea and language of ‘Crapject’ resonates
with people running the Makespaces
What we’ve learnt 7

24. Underlying ethos of openness
and collaboration, more so informally
on exisiting platforms
What we’ve learnt 8

25. COMPLEX
SIMPLE
What’s next

26. “Eventually, everything connects –
people, ideas, objects.
The quality of the connections
is the key to quality per
…”
se. …”
Eames

27. Thanks you.
#circularmakespaces
@sustainRCA
@FMs_RdM
se. …”