Miami’s Growing Maker Community
Moonlighter celebrates the makers building their businesses in the FabLab
Moonlighter announces expansion, introducing a new Co-Making space opening in July to better serve these companies and further ignite cross-disciplinary innovation in Miami
Making it at Moonlighter
Our fabrication laboratory is home to a wide variety of creative individuals, institutions, and businesses that are harnessing technology to create new products and services for our changing global economy. The barrier to entry has never been lower for creatives to produce and sell their designs. Moonlighter is proud to grow and support these activities while igniting the Maker mindset in Miami. We’re excited to share the stories of just a few of our amazing members who are actively building their creative visions each day at Moonlighter.
FASHION —
Black Dot Designs
Black Dot is a product line featuring laser cut jewelry designed by Camila Borges. With a great need for simple, modern jewelry, Camila began to sketch and create prototypes using the Moonlighter shop. It was a way for her to bridge her profession in Architecture with a love of creating smaller scale products. The designs are many times born within her daily geometric doodles at work. Other times designs are made specifically for a cause or a memory like the “Take me to Amsterdam” piece which is inspired by row houses. She simplifies and produces these designs with the laser cutter, then applies finishes and is finally assembled by hand. All pieces are made of acrylic on the laser cutter. Camila plans on expanding into 3D printed bracelets and other household items in the near future. Currently, products sell online at blackdotproducts.com, through email, or at Nomad Tribe in Wynwood and South Beach.
ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGY —
Stop Ocean Pollution
Stop Ocean Pollution is an environmental technologies startup, and it works at Moonlighter to further develop its technology. Most recently, the CNC mill at Moonlighter has come in handy to create a version of their stormwater filters using a non-metal material. The new material, once ready, will provide cities, counties and states with a lower-cost version of their technology, while maintaining the same design which has been proven effective for several years in South Florida. To learn more, check out their website at www.stopoceanpollution.com.
ART —
Shamanic Harmonics
Shamanic Harmonics makes wearable and sharable art that helps build community, strengthen personal connections, and reverberates from a core of deep experiences. Using the resin 3D printer, Laser Cutter and the CNC, Jeremy has explored new dimensions in his vector art — making his two dimensional designs come to life. He explores impossible geometries, sacred patterns, and cultural ornament then generates abstractions with digital design software. He has an active following constantly asking him to produce new work for them to buy — and sells his work around the country at major music and art events.
STARTUP —
Drip Drop Skateboards
Combining hand-crafted elements and digitally fabricated designs allow for a new level of mass customization — and Drip Drop has built a lifestyle brand around truly unique skateboards using these technologies. The level of craft and detail possible allow for nearly endless amounts of creative expression. The skateboards become an extension of the owners identity, rather than just a product bought. After years of building the boards entirely by hand, Daniel has created new prototypes using the Laser Cutter and the CNC at Moonlighter — opening up new frontiers in his design process. He is building a new product line using exotic woods and custom etched patterns. The aesthetic is clean, personalized, and authentic. You can purchase the boards at his pop-up shop at Wood. Custom boards available upon request.
ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING SERVICES —
1Click3DPrint
Known for their high resolution 3D printing capabilities, 1Click offers a range of additive manufacturing services including 3D Scanning, Full Color 3D Printing, and HD plastic prints for functional prototypes. They are also resellers for a range of FDM printers and 3D printing materials + accessories. Their expertise adds a new dimension of possibilities for the community as they offer industrial quality parts and work with you to help realize your designs. They are proud to be one of the first confirmed tenants of the new Moonlighter Co-Making space and are excited to offer their clients an expanded range of services using the other digital fabrication capabilities at the FabLab to create multi-material prototypes by combining fabrication processes.
STEM EDUCATION —
Learn 01
01 is a prototyping lab and studio for new educational ideas and products in technology and gaming. When building their new educational space, they used the FabLab at Moonlighter to create their custom furniture pieces. Each summer, Mano and 01 co-produce Wynwood Maker Camp. The camp is designed to explore the children’s vast interests while learning how to manage the students’ learning experiences. The curriculum is centered around exploring new technologies such as: programming, electronics, wearable technology, virtual reality, 3D design, collaboration, communication, and entrepreneurship. This summer, through a partnership with Moonlighter, all campers received a one month membership to the FabLab so that they can take what they’ve learned and continue making — even after their summer camp session ends.
SMALL BUSINESS —
Vice City Bean
Located in the Filling Station Lofts in the up and coming Arts and Entertainment district, VCB serves up a range of high quality coffees and teas as well as a rotating selection of artisinal bites. Their space is a reflection of Miami’s vibrant creative culture with a crafted, tropical-industrial vibe. To achieve this, they went to Moonlighter to produce one-of-a-kind custom pieces for their shop, including their stunning plywood countertop and coffee tables. Using the vinyl cutter, they were able to brand their mobile coffee bike for their outreach events. And using the laser cutter, they were able to create unique details including a stamp of their logo for branding their to-go bags and cups, as well as wooden gift certificates and promotional tokens for free coffees. They’ve become a staple in the community, serving up some of the best bean in town!
PUBLIC ART + DESIGN —
Home Eleven
Home Eleven started with the urge to create and challenge the perception of common objects and their everyday uses while creating an approachable design. They create art that borderlines between the functional and artistic but is always ethereal. They have created a line of unique furniture pieces and have been commisioned for various exhibitions. Earlier this year, with a sponsorship from Mano Americas, they were invited to design and build the Miami Maker’s Pavilion at Moonlighter for the Miami Mini Maker Faire — showcasing local collaborating designers and artists inside the space. They continue to create meaningful art installations that engage the community in an ongoing dialogue around topics that affect our collective experiences.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP —
Digifeet
Marco Fernandez is only 16 years old, but he has already founded his first startup. After struggling with flat feet for years, he wanted to design something to solve the problem more effectively than the products on the market currently do. When he saw the way 3D printers worked at Moonlighter, he had an epiphany. Why not scan the foot, 3D model a custom orthotic, and 3D print them for people? Moonlighter worked one-on-one with Marco to help develop the business plan and create the initial prototypes. They enlisted the guidance of Dr. Malia, a podiatrist who happens to be a 3Dprinting/scanning enthusiast, to provide industry insights and advice for developing the product. After submitting to the Miami Herald Business Plan Challenge, Marco won 1st place in the High School Track. He is now refining the concept and working towards building the platform to make his business a reality. He will be joining the next Make1 cohort at Miami Dade College’s Idea Center.
HIGHER EDUCATION—
MAKE1
Make1, lead by Alex Uribe, is a 16-week product design and prototyping program run by The Idea Center at Miami Dade College. Three teams made Roomba like vacuum cleaners, complete with 3-D printed wheels and laser-cut bodies, as well as custom virtual reality headsets and styrofoam furniture pieces. Make1 partnered with Moonlighter to give all the students access to the FabLab outside of class time to work on their assignments and experiment on their personal projects with the skills learned in the course. They also hosted weekly maker hours at Moonlighter where the class met to engage in more informal making and skill sharing. The students got hands on with all of the digital fabrication technologies in the space and were exposed to other makers in the community who were able to share ideas on their projects.
RESEARCH —
Tinker Tank
Tinker Tank is a Research Think Tank focusing on Hardware, Software, and it’s uses in Entrepreneurship. Moonlighter, as well as it’s Co-Making space, provides a natural habitat for them to work, prototype, and test ideas and projects. Having instant access to the Moonlighter Workshop as well as working along side other like-minded and talented people and companies helps progress their work forward and collaboratively.
STARTUP —
Tinker.Build
Tinker.Build wants to empower the world to build anything by providing an intelligent web platform that allows users to build their electronic hardware and robotic ideas without technical expertise. In order to provide the right value for their users they want to plant themselves where they work to support, research, and build a family of tools to help them build. Moonlighter’s Co-Making space is the perfect eco-system to work and participate in — and they’re also one of the first confirmed tenants of the new space!
Introducing Co-Making Space at Moonlighter
Building on the momentum of the growing maker community, Moonlighter is proud to announce its expansion with a new Co-Making space. Like co-working, members will have access to their own workspace, but instead of just getting a photocopier, a mailbox and some coffee, these companies will get access to the full Fabrication Laboratory to build and prototype their products and services. Starting a hardware company is very difficult, but working in the co-making space will help reduce initial investment to get these companies up and running. The network of Co-Makers also makes it easier to collaborate and ‘in-source’ work, allowing everyone to take on more projects that would otherwise be out of their scope of services. Applications are being accepted now. Join the maker movement and let’s disrupt industries together!
