I’ve recently posted a two-part web column on the ShopBot website that discusses some views on the economy as it relates to small business, digital fabrication, and 100kGarages (see, Part 1; Part 2). Among other things, it describes why we feel 100kGarages will offer new kinds of opportunities for those involved in digital fabrication.

The second part of the essay describes some of the directions we see things heading here at 100kGarages in terms of the emergence of “designers” who can serve as intermediaries between Makers and Fabbers. Expansion of 100kGarages to include designers is part of a broader process of building a model for new kinds of creative small businesses — businesses oriented to the changing economy and based on digital-information and digital-making technologies. We fully believe that new distributed-production and micro-manufacturing enterprises are going to blossom — we are less certain how best to help grow these new opportunities for small business. We continue to look for all the input we can get to help 100kGarages take off.