Valparaíso Makerspace

4 members, 4 complementary profiles, 4 legs to create the base that supports and propels the users to fit local needs with their ideas.

If you come for the first time in this makerspace, you will be welcomed by Dayan Echeverria, the fab manager, that will present you the place, its machines, and spirit, and will exchange with you about your need to size the support that her team can give you. This business developer has benefited from her first experience in Chrysalis, the incubator linked to the makerspace, where she used to guide entrepreneurs in their project. Now, she also defines the strategy of the space, represents the team in its ecosystem (PUCV university, Corfo or maker events), follows the budget consumption and designs the new activities. Then, depending on your needs, you can either rely on a designer, Nicolas Mora, to transform your idea or problem into a solution, or on an electric engineer and technical coordinator, César Cofré, to transform your solution into a real prototype. They will both bring you their experience but also their creativity developed during their leisure time with respectively a circus school or music device creations. Eventually, you will be proud to be part of a renowned space thanks to the communication work made by Fernanda Vargas, a journalist, who also organizes events to attract people and consolidate the community.

Together they design tools and workshops to support students, teachers and entrepreneurs in the 3 steps of their prototypes (validation of their hypothesis, inspiration to find the right solution, evolution to become a real product) with a special attention for entrepreneurs to report their progress to the Corfo which finances their projects. Aware of the community power, they also dedicate time to match members with complementary skills depending on their needs, reinforcing the community links who contribute in return to the space activities.

If you join the community of Valparaiso Makerspace, you will not be considered as a member or a user but as a local resident. And this name is not chosen randomly. It reflects the sense of belonging of the 70% of entrepreneurs, 20% of students (mainly engineers, then architects and designers) and 10% of teachers who use the resources of this space every day.

If the Chrysalis Incubator, at the origin of the place, naturally populated this place with its community of entrepreneurs, this one was completed by students and the teachers, due to its location in PUCV University, and then through word of mouth. If each of them came to prototype their academic, professional or personal project, to attend one of the 70 annual events (talk, workshops, …) or simply by curiosity, they remained for the “good atmosphere”. This one has been built on values such as collaboration and innovation which are applied by giving a completely free access to the space resources in return for a contribution to the community. Each member chooses how to contribute: it can be makers talks to share their experience, workshops or contribution to other projects. Baby foot, arcade games, open-day pizza, biannual meeting, rules of life as greeting on entering are all good practices that also consolidated this community.

Each newcomer is welcomed by a member of the team who presents the site, discusses his project and builds with him the next stages of training (45 min per machine per group of 3 minimum), of coaching (specific workshops for entrepreneurs) and of using the space. Everyone is encouraged to develop a project that has a positive impact on the region and to rely on the community to reach it.

After 3 years of existence, the community is strong and the team has developed a solid experience, thanks to the support of the Chilean makers’ network. Now, they aim to open their doors to the general public through a program of digital fabrication workshops, Fabrik , to identify and empower the inventors of tomorrow.

In November 2018, the team was starting to change completely their business model after 3 years entirely funded by the government.

In 2015, 3 Universities, the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, the Universidad Catolica and the Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María created a common program to benefit from the financial public fund called “Ingeniera 2030”, distributed by the Corfo, to transform their engineering schools in internationally renowned institutions. To benefit from this economical support they have to create an educative, innovative and entrepreneurial ecosystem where technology produces a national and international impact in the market. Valparaiso makerspace was created to support this ecosystem so they were fully financed during 3 years with the exception of the space renting offered by the PUCV University. As a consequence, they don’t have to report about their incomes and benefits but about :

• the number of prototypes made in the space with an impact for society
• the number of thesis with a potential of real case application
• the number of users
• the number of training achieved
• the number of activities to foster investigation
• the number of activities to foster entrepreneurship

Now, they have 3 years to find a sustainable business model. The funds will be progressively reduced during this period. They have already tested different activities such as workshops or courses of students that give them ideas to develop activities that can maintain the free use of the space for the community.