Nova Labs was a critical component to our success in the early stages of development. Having access to space, equipment, and an amazing community of makers gave the Applied Impact Robotics team an opportunity to be successful in validating key concepts. This validation paid off in February of 2021, when Applied Impact Robotics secured $1.25 million in seed funding from Chrysalix Venture Capital. Our idea was able to grow at Nova Labs over 18 months, and is now injecting over a million dollars into the economy and creating five local STEM related jobs. We have even been able to recruit several Nova Labs members with the necessary specialized skills to join our team. We have also created a summer program for five high school interns, offering professional experience in a hands-on STEM startup.

When two high-demand products were no longer available on the wholesale market this past year, I looked into small batch manufacturing. I found Nova Labs and saw that it offers all the skills I need to learn to make them myself. I couldn't resist! Even if I end up working with a professional manufacturer, it would be in my best interest to understand the process and be able to speak to them intelligently, so joining Nova Labs was a win-win for me. 

I am currently learning leatherworking, CAD design, 3D printing and plastic/resin molding at Nova Labs. You cannot find all of that anywhere else, especially at such reasonable cost for membership and classes. This access to knowledge, tools and mentors is what I needed to charge ahead on something I would have otherwise procrastinated on due to uncertainty of how to do anything.

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There are many challenges in starting a fabrication business, and one of the biggest hurdles is procuring the variety of equipment needed to make physical models. Most competitor model shops build up their services alongside the tools they can afford to purchase over several years. With Nova Lab's resources, Model Space was able to start as a full services shop from day one. 

Since 2016, Model Space has grown steadily, serving architects, contractors, engineers, and product designers. All of this was possible in part due to the resources at Nova Labs. Nova Labs also allows Model Space the flexibility to grow with office options in their Innovation Center. With this community support Model Space has become an agile company that can take on a variety of model building projects.

Asoleyo was born out of the support and encouragement found within the Nova Labs community. I originally became a member to work on my fabrication skills and learn advanced tools to use as an artist and visual designer. Through the network of makers I met, I was encouraged to apply for a Department of Energy competition. I never would have heard about this opportunity without Nova Labs, nor would I have thought I was qualified to apply for it. As a result, my decorative solar cells made it to the national finals of the American Made Solar Prize, and I have secured more than $330k in funding to develop and commercialize my product. We are now working on full-scale prototypes with manufacturers on three continents, and have been awarded a Department of Energy Small Business Innovation and Research grant to continue development.

We continue to benefit from the fertile cross-disciplinary collaboration and supportive community that is always on display at Nova Labs, and have located our office at Nova Labs' Innovation Center as we continue to grow.

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