Fab lab to be located on CCCC campus

Nearly two years after the county-wide Strategic Doing initiative identified a fabrication lab as a priority, Cloud County Community College has announced that it will have a home on the Concordia campus.
The space, named Cloud Maker, will be a county-wide community fabrication lab. It will be located in the former ceramics room in the Tech West building. It will be an advanced workshop space to provide widespread access to modern means for invention.
Cloud County Community College president Dr. Adrian Douglas said that Cloud Maker will be a space to inspire people and entrepreneurs to turn their ideas into new projects by giving them access to a range of equipment and technology.
“Cloud Maker will encourage people to become makers by exploring the entire design process from concepts to final product,” Douglas said, “Our ultimate goal is to use this space to help promote economic development opportunities throughout the region.”
The Cloud County Community College board of trustees, last year, identified a fab lab as one of its strategic priorities to address area workforce needs.
“In today's global marketplace, employers need a workforce of thinkers who can solve problems in new and creative ways,” Douglas said, “Cloud Maker is designed to create such thinkers and help employers to be more profitable and competitive.”
Cloud Maker will have a 3D printer, borrowed from the college's renewable energy technology program, as well as additional equipment to begin with.
“Now that we have a location for the fab lab, we can solicit grant funding to fully equip the space,” Douglas said, “It is definitely an evolving project that will only grow.”