DOHA: The Assistive Technology Centre (Mada) of the Ministry of Transport and Communications in cooperation with ibTechar company has launched Mada FabLab.
It has been approved by the Fab Foundation to be part of the international network of Fab Labs that includes more than 1,900 laboratories around the world.
Mada FabLab is an innovation and learning centre, as it is a digital manufacturing laboratory equipped with devices and equipment that allow inventors, entrepreneurs, students and artists to transform their ideas and creativity into actual and practical reality, by designing prototypes for their innovations.
It allows them to manufacture them and sharing them with an interactive community of technologists, researchers, makers and innovators.
New concept
FabLab is an abbreviation of Fabrication Laboratory (FAB LAB), which expresses a new concept different from the traditional laboratories, launched by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2005 to promote innovation and entrepreneurship by providing the appropriate environment and the necessary tools through workshops or a manufacturing laboratory supervised by a specialised team,
The team provides support for innovators and people with creative ideas to develop them into prototypes of electronic products and devices that benefit society.
The launch of Mada FabLab came in line with Mada’s strategy aimed at supporting inclusiveness and enhancing innovation in technological solutions. The lab is a qualitative achievement at the regional and global level because of its pivotal role in achieving more comprehensiveness in the field of digital access by adopting a comprehensive design.
Mada aims to make Mada FabLab a global reference that contributes to bridging the digital gap by adopting the inclusion approach and encouraging the use of technology for more innovation and creativity.
Significance
The significance of Mada FabLab lies in its interactive and accessible work environment, as it encourages everyone, including those with disabilities, to innovate, manufacture and transform creative ideas into inventions and develop and exchange knowledge and experiences, which will contribute to achieving economically and socially sustainable development.
Mada FabLab will also have a major role in unleashing the potential and attracting distinguished innovators and inventors as well as bringing about revolutionary change in line with the rapid technological progress, considering it is a link and a turning point between information and communication technology and digital manufacturing.
This greatly contributes to using accessibility to information and communication technology in the field of digital manufacturing and technological innovation that drives the development of society and which in turn constitutes an indicator of the progress of societies.
Inclusive of all
By launching the Mada FabLab as the first laboratory of its kind designed to be inclusive of all, Mada Centre seeks to bring about a comprehensive positive change and further enhance innovation and production.
It also aims to design the space and environment of the laboratory not only for people with disabilities, but to open the field for all and make Mada FabLab a centre designated for the creators and the building of a generation of makers and innovators in the fields of assistive technology as well as information and communication technology.
The centre believes in the importance of adopting innovation and keeping pace with the new industrial revolution based on artificial intelligence.