Makerspace Signage
Designing educational signs for a new prototyping space.
In Fall 2018, I researched and designed the instructional signage for a new university makerspace called Studio One.
Studio One was the flagship makerspace for Northeastern University’s student-led product development studio, Generate. I’d been a member of Generate for three semesters as both a product engineer and project lead, but in fall 2019, I decided to join the Operations team as Resource Coordinator, a new position that I helped develop. As Resource Coordinator, I leveraged my design and rapid prototyping experience to establish workflows and organizational systems within Studio One, consult with teams on their projects to offer design insights, and connect teams with appropriate prototyping technology (3D printing, laser cutting, etc.)
My most important project during the semester was translating the best practices, workflows, and cultural priorities of Studio One into a collection of wall-mounted signage.
After scoping out the project with the rest of the Operations team, I started by iterating with simple overlay sketches. Through these sketches, I honed in on our 3D printing signage, welcome signage, and safety signage; and explored different visual structures for each. I then translated these sketches into Adobe Illustrator files, and after a few rounds of feedback, worked with the University to print the signs on foam core and, finally, mount them to the walls of our makerspace.
This makerspace has since expanded into an larger, better equipped space within Northeastern's Sherman Center for Engineering Entrepreneurship Education.