Many BYU students come to the library to study, check out books or work on homework, but on the fourth floor of the Harold B. Lee Library, students can do more than learn — they can create.
BYU Makerspace offers professional-grade equipment to students and faculty, regardless of their area of study.
“It’s a place for everyone really to come and create, and design and make things that they want to make. It's a place for prototyping, it's a place for learning new skills,” said Tyson Drake, a Makerspace employee. “This is a place that is open to all majors, so people can come and learn new skills and try new things.”
A wide variety of resources are available for students to use, including Drake's specialty: microimaging.
“At the Makerspace we offer a lot of services, and one that I particularly have worked on a little bit is the microimaging that we have here,” he said. “This is a spot for students to come and take very high-resolution, close-up images of small things.”
There are many other services and machines available for student use, with the most popular being 3D printing.
“Our services most commonly used are 3D printing, laser cutting and engraving, sewing and poster printing, so we have all kinds of resources here,” said Eli Anderson, another Makerspace employee. “Pretty much anything you need, you can find it here.”
Students can use the machines and receive help from the lab technicians free of charge. The only cost they might incur is for materials.
“Students bring their own materials in and use those, but really, the majority of things that we have here are free for students to use,” Drake said.
While the Makerspace might not be the most well-known place on campus, it allows students from a variety of majors to learn new skills and try new projects.
“We love when students come in, we love to help you with your projects and we like to help you learn new skills that you like,” Anderson said.
For more information, stop by the Makerspace on the fourth floor of the library or check out its list of resources on the library website.