Mpho Makutu

The Maker culture space refers to communities that gather in and around maker spaces, a concept offshoot of the early MIT Fab Lab movement. With their eye on realising tools for the 4IR pillars, these communities support skills development, prototyping and production using additive manufacturing, IoT, physical computing (robotics), and experimental code formats. We sat down with one of the creative geniuses behind these workshops, Mpho Makutu, to find out more about his role in solidifying this space and creating a ‘Maker culture’ way of thinking about innovation.

Please could you introduce yourself and give a brief introduction to who you are.

I’m the founder of Robotics. I specialize in robots and also facilitate the workshops on how to use 3D printers to design as well.

What role are you playing in the festival?

We have been teaching people how to use the CAD software, a computer-aided design. We share knowledge on how to design using that software and then after designing, pull the designs into a cure, from that, to lights and other softwares that we use for printing. So the participants are all a part of this for the festival. They will learn how to design a product using CAD software which is computer-aided design and also 3D print.

The definition for maker culture as publicly as it provides his maker communities for skills, skill development, prototyping and production, they also play a key role in building the Internet of Things will explore the growth of maker culture across Africa and peek at the ongoing project so prototyping Is this what you would say is what you make with the 3d prints and what kind of prints do you make?

I can take it from there like I can design that for someone like I can design it on on a CAD software and then I can 3d print that for him or I can show him how to do that software and then he or she can print that like yeah, I can just show you step by step on how to how to design and then yeah, you can take that to the printer. So and then and then again according to them, I’m just going to as well go according to the equations that they said like I will have to answer as well as gonna be like question number two.

So like the importance of this workshop or this festival so it’s that as the participants they will see the importance of building using tech very helpful and simplification I should put it that way because of what like one would start to see that everything is possible after designing a product which is a phone holder so they will be designing an earphone holder so it’s going to be a product that everyone will have to design is going to be the same product so now and and and again one would that to be very innovative by thinking out outside the box. Let’s take for an example let’s say there’s one there’s a guy maybe who’s into art and they will be made pendants like you see these guys sometimes they using their hands to make like pendants and then they can cram it like Sunday using the ends to make like what do you call the uriens so one we start to see that Oh, now I can use a CAD software to design that hearing instead of taking two hours designing one earring there now I can catch off grainy design that in an hour and then after that I can make a couple of a couple of that earrings like yeah, so I mean like cool. What do you mean?

You mentioned the importance of the program which is making designs for our life. You know when we think about the theme of this year, which is both because you have to know what the expectations of the festival are, and how do you think Maker culture is exploring the root of both?

I will start by saying that the impact of this festival will be an opportunity for the knowledge of skills of how the CAD software works, computer-aided design, and also to create 3D printing machines. This allows them to be very creative and start designing more products for commercialization.

What have you done on your own as an employee using this art form and how did you start?

My passion comes from designing and making stuff, no one really taught me how to build this stuff. From a very young age, I used to build using trash from different places, things like cars that can move with remote controllers and excavators like my “Admiral Area.”

I would go home to look for spare electrical parts for my father’s music system and then take that apart. I would also take my designs to school and ensure the teachers and other students saw them and they were always motivating me to continue.

Are you excited to be no part of fabric AC?

My program is going to start at 20 Press. FirstNet is going to be this Thursday, and I’m very excited about that. I am happy to see people learning these skills. A lot of us have always believed in ourselves and the things we design. You only need people who can offer you this kind of skill because I know everyone goes out very happy after attending this workshop.

How do you, in your work, make sure that you put the stamp on this as a proudly African innovation, and how are you going to make sure that whatever you produce as input is proudly representative of being African for being from where you were raised?

I’m a treasure wood maker and that is something that is in me, and I don’t want to lose. I’m using these machines and 3D printers to create designs, and I always make sure that Africans are represented in some way.

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iQhawe Magazine

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