Evan Malone brought his Cornell University engineering Ph.D., masters in robotics, and University of Pennsylvania physics degree back to Philadelphia in 2008 to start the first iteration of NextFab, a pioneer in the “makerspace” movement that sought to democratize new digital tools for a vision of locally based manufacturing.
For-profit NextFab built centers in West, South and North Philly, even a Delaware outpost. It signed up more than 5,000 area inventors, tinkerers, tech prophets, and artisans, who used the centers’ hand and electric tools and digital-controlled machines to build prototypes of their dreams, aided by staff and colleagues.
But the makerspace movement proved transient as 3D printers and other cool tools grew cheap enough for home use.
NextFab has consolidated its makerspaces to a 60,000-square-foot warehouse on North American…
