Making and makerspaces: Exploring community centres as creative hubs in China

Figures & data

Table 1. A comparison between makerspaces and community centres in Shanghai.

	Makerspaces		Community Centres
	XinCheJian	FabLab O	Miyun Road Centre	Fuxin Road Centre	Citizen Service Station of Quyang Community
Venue Size	Approximately 200 m^2	Approximately 500 m^2	Approximately 700-1000 m^2
Number of members	100+		N/A
Average Visitors	10+ per day		40+ per day
Average number of staff	1 full time and 2-3 part time		1-2 full time
People	Young people and start-ups interested in digital fabrication	School students for STEAM education	Residents mainly aged groups	Residents, including older and parents with children	Residents including young professionals and older
Activity	Digital fabrication and products prototyping	Training on digital fabrication	Public service and self-organized creation activities
			Health check, skills training and handcrafting	Painting, calligraphy, fitness course, language course for children	Painting, handcrafting, public cafeteria and charity shop
Context	City centre surround by office buildings.	Beside a university.	Located within the resident community. Places for recreation and socialising for most people.
	Does not look welcoming to non-members
Tech	Professional Fablab equipment and traditional crafting tools. Using social media to promote.		Public service-based space and spatial but no professional tools for making. Using social media to publicize its function and reach out more source.

Figure 1. Motivations for making (Younger Group, left and Older Group, right).

Figure 2. Preferred making activities (Younger Group, left and Older Group, right).

Figure 3. Requirements for makerspaces (Younger Group, left and Older Group, right).

Figure 4. People in makerspaces (XinCheJian, top left and FabLab O, top right) and community centres (bottom).

Figure 5. Activities in makerspaces (XinCheJian, top left and FabLab O, top right) and community centres (bottom).

Figure 6. Context in makerspaces (XinCheJian, top left and FabLab O, top right) and community centres (bottom).

Figure 7. Technologies in makerspaces (XinCheJian, top left and FabLab O, top right) and community centres (bottom).