Materials
Selecting a Fab Lab Material
For updated Material Options, see Fab Lab Materials List at:
All materials are available for instant purchase directly from the Fab Lab, or a staff will use the correct materials for your job when specified at submission. All pricing information is included in the link.
All materials that can be processed by the laser cutter's must be no larger than 900mm x 1200mm.
Using External Materials
Students who wish to cut their own material must check the Approved Materials List prior to submitting their job (refer to link above).
If the material you wish to have cut doesn't appear on approved materials list, submit a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) and a material sample to the Fab Lab office.
Materials not listed on the approved materials list should be discussed with staff before purchase.
Material Safety Data Sheets are generally provided by the supplier of the material and indicates key safety information such as chemical composition and ignition temperatures of the material. While a wide range of materials are suitable for the laser cutter some must be avoided for health and safety reasons.
Follow the steps on how to do this by following this link:
Once approved, students are required to bring in a spare sheet of their material in order for Fab Lab staff to have a backup for any errors and to further test laser settings for the material. Material must be able to fit inside the 900mm x 1200mm bed of the lasers AND accurately resized in the digital template of the submitted file.
Reusing Fab Lab Materials
The Fab Lab encourages students to reuse material that has been previously cut by the Fab Lab in order to minimise waste.
Preparing Your File
On the Fab Lab template, indicate the location of the geometry that has been cut by
copying the geometry from the original file that has been cut, and paste into the fresh template.
Change the old geometry to the 'Material / edge offset' (magenta) layer.
Prepare your geometry to be cut as normal.
Nest your new geometry on the same sheet.
Indicate you are using own material in the material details section on the template.
Submit your job to the Fab Lab.
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