I recently went to the Chattanooga Public Library in Downtown Branch to explore all they offer to entrepreneurs and the public on their fourth floor Makerspace.
Crissy Varnell manages the entire fourth floor which has a small, dedicated staff trained in the various equipment the public can utilize in the sprawling 12,000 square-foot space.
Use of the equipment is free; you don’t even need a library card. There are some material use fees to cover items such as printer paper, vinyl stickers, buttons and a few other items. A library card is required if you want to check out certain items they have available.
Varnell said prior to 2012 the fourth floor was underutilized and served as a catch-all storage space.
The library director at the time decided to turn the space into a Makerspace, which many other public libraries already had. Varnell said, at first, it was a bit of trial and error.
“Now we've transitioned to listening to our community,” she said. “That’s how we have guided the purchases of the different makerspace equipment now. We are listening to what the community wants and looking to see what's being utilized the most. It's a very creative space, but it's also an entrepreneurial space.”
Varnell said they don’t expect the public to know how every piece of equipment works which is why her dedicated staff is trained on most of the equipment and some “Makerspace Specialists,” are experts on certain equipment.
Some of the equipment requires a mandatory one-hour one-on-one training lesson with a Makerspace Specialist prior to use.
The tour started at the 3D printing station.
“We have two different types of 3D printers,” she pointed out. “We have your standard extruder-based, which basically means that it melts plastic and builds it into something. You can build whatever you want. Then we also have a resin printer. Resin is a lot more complicated. This is one of the stations that requires a one-on-one lesson, and you can email us to set those up.”
They have 2 pianos on the fourth floor the public can use. Varnell explained the library has a full professional recording studio on the second floor that includes a sound engineer.
Next to the pianos is a computer equipped with the entire Adobe Suite for video editing, photos and design. In the center of the space are the two vinyl plotters.
“These are our two most popular pieces of equipment,” Varnell said. “We sell vinyl sticker, and we also sell heat transfer vinyl and T-shirts.”
Across the vinyl plotters, there are two large scale printers.
“We have two different large format printers,” Varnell said. “And the difference between the two is a great example of how we listen to our community.”
Their Epson printer is 36-inches wide and uses double weight matte paper.
“So, it's not a gloss,” Varnell said. “This printer is technically like a plotter. It does do full color but there's only five ink cartridges in it but the way that people have used this printer is mind-blowing to us. It is usually booked solid and so people will come in and do posters for their events, they'll do signage, and we've got a lot of food truck owners that come and print their menus using this.”
The other printer is more suited for photographers and artists.
“This Canon printer has 12 ink cartridges, and we do have a couple of different types of paper for this one, but what it prints is incredible,” she said holding up a life-like black and white photo of a swan.
Next, we walked to the two Glowforge laser cutters.
“This is another piece of equipment that requires the one-on-one lesson,” Varnell said.
The laser is used to carve wood or engraving.
“We sell wooden boards here so that you don't have to run to the craft store,” she said. “We don't sell acrylic, but they use acrylic in here a lot. We've had people do leather.”
She said there are certain stipulations if the if people are looking to use glass.
They have a Computer Numerical Control (CNC) router, embroidery equipment and screen-printing equipment.
Toward the back of the large space is their photography studio.
“We have professional lighting,” she said. “We have a white backdrop, a black backdrop. Behind that we have a professional green screen. One of the things that is popular here is that people will use the studio and then use our Adobe Suite computer to edit their photos. We do have a DSLR camera that people can check out to use here.”
At the back Varnell shows me their antique floor loom and the sewing machine area. She said she likes to show off the antique loom next to the modern sewing machines so she can explain how fabrics are still made using the loom and how modern sewing machines can turn those fabrics into dresses, gowns, aprons and anything imaginable.
“I created a sewing curriculum that teaches you the basics,” Varnell said.
Varnell then proceeded to show me their tool library. Thanks to a partnership with Elder’s Ace Hardware the public can check out tools, pressure cleaners, wheel barrels, shovels, extension cords, hoses and almost everything you’d see in a hardware store.
They have a mobile 4 library where you can check out movie projectors, camera tripods, USB hubs and other specialized electronics. The library has a partnership with Outdoor Chattanooga allowing you to check out tents, sleeping bags, lanterns, binocular and more. The items can be checked out for seven days. The library catalogs are visible on a tablet on the fourth floor and also listed on their website.
“We want to be very accessible,” Varnell said. “We are trying to break down the barriers to access.”
Chattanooga Public Library
- 1001 Broad Street, Chattanooga, TN
- (423) 643-7700
- Fourth Floor Makerspace: chattlibrary.org/4th-floor/