fablab@aup.ac.uk
About Us
About Us
About Us
About Us
About Us
About Us
About Us

About Us

Fab Lab South West at Arts University Plymouth is the South West's largest Fab Lab, giving businesses, students and makers access to rapid prototyping and advanced manufacturing, from 3D printing and laser cutting to CNC machining and 3D scanning, in Britain’s Ocean City.

Fab Lab South West is the South West Peninsula’s largest Fab Lab, based at Arts University Plymouth in the heart of Britain’s Ocean City. We connect ideas to impact through open access to advanced manufacturing – from 3D printing (FDM, SLA, SLS) and laser cutting to CNC machining, LiDAR and handheld 3D scanning – so that businesses, students and communities can move from concept to prototype to product, faster and more sustainably.

As part of the global Fab Lab network in 120+ countries, we link the region’s innovators to an international community of makers and researchers. This global-local bridge underpins Plymouth’s role as the UK’s first Fab City, committed to producing what it consumes by 2054.

What sets us apart nationally is the combination of open access, industry-facing R&D, and a specialist arts university ecosystem. Alongside our Materials, Fabric and Multimedia Labs on a 13,000m² city-centre campus, partners can prototype new products, test sustainable materials and train teams within a collaborative environment designed for creative and technical excellence.

Impact across sectors

  • Healthcare & low-carbon tech: Prototyping systems that capture and reuse anaesthetic gases to reduce the sector’s carbon footprint.

  • Heritage & the built environment: High-precision LiDAR scanning and modelling for Grade I-listed renovations.

  • Sustainable product development: Bio-based packaging moulds that reduce reliance on imported pulp.

  • Circular economy in food & drink: CO₂ recovery for brewery operations with potential local agriculture benefits.

Founded by Arts University Plymouth in 2014, Fab Lab South West has supported hundreds of businesses and organisations, from micro-enterprises to sector leaders, helping to drive entrepreneurship and sustainable making across the South West.

Professor Paul Fieldsend-Danks, Vice-Chancellor & Chief Executive, Arts University Plymouth: "Fab Lab South West demonstrates how a specialist arts university turns ideas into impact for our region. We successfully pair creativity with advanced manufacturing so people and businesses can prototype faster, reduce waste and build sustainable products. Through FabLab South West we attract talent and opportunity to the region while connecting local ambition to a global maker network."

Who we’re for

  • Business: Membership, commissions and phased R&D collaborations aligned to funding and product milestones.

  • Community: Maker memberships and workshops that democratise access to cutting-edge tools.

  • Education: Training and collaborations that blend traditional craft with digital fabrication to prepare the next generation of innovators.

How to work with us

Access our equipment, expertise and spaces through membership, one-off commissions, bespoke training or industry R&D partnerships, with routes tailored for micro-businesses, SMEs and larger organisations.

Services

Business Business

Busi­ness

Based in Ply­mouth, the South West­’s largest Fab Lab helps busi­ness­es move from con­cept to mar­ket, includ­ing rapid pro­to­typ­ing, 3D print­ing, laser cut­ting, CNC and 3D scan­ning, with mem­ber­ship options, com­mis­sions, train­ing and R&D inside Arts Uni­ver­si­ty Plymouth.
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Community Community

Com­mu­ni­ty

In Fab Lab South West, mak­ers, artists and com­mu­ni­ty groups can access world-class tools, from 3D print­ing and laser cut­ting to CNC and 3D scan­ning. Join via mem­ber­ship or work­shops to cre­ate, col­lab­o­rate and build sus­tain­able ideas for the South West.
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Education Education

Edu­ca­tion

Based at Arts Uni­ver­si­ty Ply­mouth, Fab Lab South West gives schools, col­leges and uni­ver­si­ty learn­ers hands-on access to dig­i­tal fab­ri­ca­tion, includ­ing 3D print­ing, laser cut­ting, CNC and 3D scan­ning, blend­ing craft and tech­nol­o­gy through train­ing and projects that build indus­try-ready cre­ative skills.
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