SMART Fabrication Factory open for research
Students watch the water jet cut terra cotta during a demonstration and opening reception for the SMART Fabrication Factory in Parker Hall.
Published November 8, 2018 This content is archived.
Faculty, students and partners in industry recently gathered at SMART Fabrication Factory for demonstrations and tours of the new making space next to the School of Architecture and Planning's shop in Parker Hall.
The Factory is a prototyping facility that will support collaborative research with industry and a support faculty research and teaching in material fabrication and digital craft. Among its high-powered tools are a multi-axis water jet machine that can cut through six-inch-thick stone, an industrial platform laser cutter, and a front-loading kiln for firing ceramics. The high-bay ceilings and slab floor allow for installation and display of full-scale prototypes and built works.
The facility is open to UB faculty, staff, students engaged in SMART-related research, government and industry partners and researchers from other academic institutions.
The SMART Community of Excellence at UB brings together architecture, engineering, management and economics, among other disciplines, to advance research in next-generation technologies and processes in advanced manufacturing. In addition to the engagement of numerous architecture faculty, SMART is co-led by associate professor Omar Khan.
Learn more about the SMART Fabrication Factory