FAB’LAB 58: A NEW SPACE FOR CREATIVITY AND EXPERIMENTATION IN VERBERIE

On Thursday, October 1st, Laurent Bataille, Frédéric Michelland, and part of the Poclain management committee inaugurated Poclain’s "FAB’LAB 58" in Verberie. The FAB’LAB 58 team welcomed them with a tour of the newly organized facility.

Why FAB’LAB and why "58"?

FAB’LAB is short for "fabrication laboratory". It is a place for experimenting and realizing innovative ideas. It is also a space for discovery and exchange around new technologies. Poclain’s FAB’LAB 58 focuses on this goal while remaining true to the company's heritage and culture. It was this dynamic of creativity and experimentation that fueled the very first Poclain Hydraulics motor design in 1958 by Claude Bataille: the G0 hydraulic motor.

The FAB’LAB 58 inauguration was an opportunity for the members of the fab lab to present their achievements and show how they are accelerating experimentation with new technologies.

The FAB’LAB 58 team works on strategic technological ideas and brings in designers for short runs to work on innovative ideas or technological challenges. The fab lab also tests innovative methodologies to accelerate the pace of innovation at Poclain.

The fab lab takes a "test & learn" approach. Experiments take the form of successive sprints of short duration (1 week). Ideas translate into first concepts that are then tested. Based on the first test results, the team modifies and improves concepts, then tests them again. Several iterations may follow one another before obtaining a satisfactory solution. This fast pace is made possible with collaboration from the "prototyping" and "testing" teams and an internal and external network.

The FAB’LAB 58 in four points

#Creativity: the FAB’LAB 58 is a “breathing space" that allows designers looking for innovative technical solutions to immerse themselves in the design process. The team provides them with technical resources and creative methods to accompany them in their search for solutions.

#Experimentation: using various technical means to develop multidisciplinary ideas. It is a place to take risks and test innovative ideas within the context of the company's current technological expertise while capitalizing on each failure.

#Proactivity: Accelerate the time to technical validation for new concepts by pivoting between initial idea and final concept multiple times.

#Exchange: The FAB’LAB 58 is an open place that stimulates exchange between the company's different areas of technical expertise and listens to new technological trends.

FAB'LAB 58 contacts: Vincent Langlois, Director R&D, France; and Julien VIARD, Fablab Leader