My Fabacademy Experience...

Coming from a product design background, I have mostly worked on aspects of a product such as it's form factor, functionality, user research and experience. But one thing that i felt was missing throughout my design journey was the fabrication and technical details of a product. And by some coincidence I found out about fabacademy one fine day through another designer who said it may turn out to be something i would be interested in. I called, visited the Super fablab and joined the very next day as classes had already started a month ago. I jumped into this whole process not really understanding what the academy was all about . All I knew was that i was ready to learn something that had been daunting and intimidating for me for the longest time. I wasn't as sure if i would be able to grasp the concepts ,keep up with topics or use machines that I had no prior experience working with. But turns out it was the most fun i had in a long time! Don't get me wrong it was a very hectic and challenging course but it was worth every moment spent. Each week i looked forward to about various subjects such as electronics, programming, Computer Aided design and fabrication technologies. Our instructors were absolutely amazing and the effort they put into guiding us and sharing their knowledge is something i will always be grateful for! They provided all necessary support and created this environment where we were able to freely explore and expand on our ideas . The classroom was filled with fun,laughter and ideas thanks to my batchmates! The awesome and powerful global Fab community network ,that I am a part of now ,was a welcome surprise i did not see coming and i am really thankful for the support they provide.

My main goal being a designer was to still integrate and bring something creative into a mostly engineering focused area. I wanted to make sure that i would be able to regain the freedom and joy of creating through this medium too. So most of my projects were based on how much fun and interesting i could make it for myself. This made me dive deeper and sparked intrest in areas that i would have never thought about if not for the academy. Even the way we had to document each week's works have helped to piece our progress together.

Throughout the weeks i slowly but surely made progress towards my final project , Mogapad, a modular gaming macropad device that can be used to play various games based on the number of modules attached. The product was inspired from the minesweeper game we used to play in our computers back in the day. I wanted to explore how handheld gaming devices could be brought back into this era and to explore the aspect of being in the present and how it can help enhance cognitive function and opportunities for relaxation and stress reduction.

At the end of the course, I feel that as a designer, I am more equipped and informed about the technical and fabrication aspects surrounding a product and that has shifted my perspective in designing a product. It has broadened the possibilities and opened up new opportunities to explore. Being a part of the academy will be a critical milestone to look back on my journey forward. The biggest lesson i learnt was to always enjoy and be open to the process of learning and creating and make it fun for yourself!