February is fast and furious at the Fab Lab! We kicked things off with a great First Friday at the Fab Lab, on Feb. 4th with Chis Morancie of NET Synergy Virtual Solutions, and then headed off to the Florida Inventors Hall of Fame Induction Gala, to accept the honor of induction on behalf of FIRST founder Dean Kamen, followed by Synapse Summit and the State Fair. Jump in anywhere!

Hours This Month

Hours will vary this month, due to the number of off-site programs in which AMRoC Fab Lab is participating. In February, the Fab Lab is Closed to the Public on the following days:

Tuesday, Feb. 8 – State Fair load in
Wed, Feb. 9- Half Day hours, 2pm to 7:30pm
Friday, Feb. 11 – State Fair kick off at the Florida State Fairgrounds
Thursday, Feb. 17 – Synapse Summit, Amalie Arena
Friday, Feb. 18 – Hillsborough Schools Day at the State Fair
Saturday Feb 26 – Rapid React Scrimmage at AMRoC

AMRoC on the Move!

AMRoC is on the move this month. Here’s where you can find us throughout the month:

Florida State Fair Feb. 10-21

We’re in the Florida Center at the Florida State Fairgrounds through Feb. 21 with some of our community partners including Tampa Drones, WellFed Community, local FIRST and REC VEX youth robotics teams who have participated in our ROBOTICON event, NRL Beetle Weight combat robotics and more!

Check out the robots, fly the drones, and explore a variety of hands-on science and tech fun and learning.

Florida Inventors Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony Feb. 11

Dean Kamen holds over 450 patents, and is the President of DEKA Research and Development. He is the inventor of the Segway® and AutoSyringe™. as well as portable dialysis and other life-saving medical devices and processes. Dean Kamen considers his greatest innovation to be FIRST, a youth STEM education program he founded nearly 40 years ago, and which is the genesis for AMRoC Fab Lab, from which we further developed a pipeline of related education, training and workforce services and programming. Additionally, our ROBOTICON Tampa Bay event annually celebrates FIRST youth robotics with a full FIRST Robotics Competition Off-Season event and showcase.

Dean Kamen was unable to attend the event, so Foundation for Community Driven Innovation (FCDI) Executive Director Terri Willingham accepted the award on his behalf.

Synapse Summit Feb. 17

We had a ball at Synapse Summit at the Amalie Arena supporting HADO AR active gaming with our Community Partner, Green Mouse Academy , and anchoring an AMRoC and Friends booth in the Soaring City/RITHM at Uptown Showcase area where guests can learn about the different STEM, workforce and entrepreneurship education programs we offer at AMRoC.

 

 

 

And then we’re actually moving – to a new location at University Mall (soon to be RITHM at Uptown), sometime this spring, right across the Mall Hall from where we’re currently based.

Look for more updates soon, as we expand into a new space with new programming and resources! And if you’re at any of the above events, stop by to say hi and check out all the engaging and interactive ways of Learning by Doing that AMRoC Fab Lab offers all year long!

February Programs Schedule

Here’s what’s on tap for February!

Feb. 23 – Teacher’s STEM Education Play Date! 4pm to 7pm There’s no charge for this guided and open play for educators, who can explore hands on STEM experiences like building with LEGOs, 3D printing, programming, robotics, drones, CAD, electronics projects & more! Educators ID required for participation. RSVP here.

Feb. 25 – Open Make is ordinarily every 2nd and 4th Friday 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm – But this month, we’ll be at the Florida Inventors Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on Feb. 11, so we’re only holding Open Make on Feb. 25. If you’re Interested in working on a project or refining build and design skills this is your day in February though! RSVP in advance on AMRoC Open Make Reservation Form

Feb. 26 – Uptown Tampa Meetup6:00pm to 7:30pm – Join us every 4th Saturday at 6pm to talk about all things Uptown! Hear the latest on redevelopment plans, meet local residents and small businesses, and help us build a resilient, informed and connected Uptown Community! Learn more and RSVP here. This month, we’re celebrating local Black and Brown owned businesses in celebration of Black History Month.

Big Idea Brew Club 

We’re excited to relaunch our Equity in Entrepreneurship program with three distinct opportunities for nascent, very early-stage Uptown Tampa entrepreneurs to learn how to successfully run their own business! Starting this month, you can register for the Big Idea Brew Club (BIBC) kicking off in the spring.

BIBC will be held every other month giving participants the opportunity to work with our Idea Development Specialists who will help you understand whether your Big Idea is worth brewing into a small business.

Our Development Specialists help you walk through the concepts needed to understand your minimum viable product, customer base, estimate business expenses and revenue, and required personal time and financial commitment.

Later this year, look for the Entrepreneurs Startup Club Launch Pad and the Entrepreneurs Cruise Club to help you take a deeper dive into running your own business.

You can see stories about past sessions and sign up to be notified about upcoming programs at Equinent.com .

Kudos and Congratulations!

Congratulations to AMRoC Fab Lab house team, FIRST Tech Challenge team 2845 Team Duct Tape , a community team of middle and high school students, for their great showing at the Tampa ROBOT League Championship this month, wrapping up their season with the League Design Award! Great job, Team Duct Tape!

 

AMRoC R&D Labs – Helping You Helps Us!

Stuck on design or programming problem? AMRoC R&D Labs is available for consultation and hire to solve business and creative needs and challenges across a diverse field of expertise for public, private and government sectors.

Professional fees benefit youth programs, in addition to solving your work challenges. The team is currently working on technology solutions for marine, communications, and aerospace projects, and welcomes the opportunity to work explore creative solutions to your business challenges, as well!

AMRoC Fab Lab resources include CNC milling, laser cutting, 3D printing and rapid prototyping, CAD design services and more.  Visit our AMRoC Services page to learn more and schedule an appointment.