Why it should be followed

In Detroit, a Techshop to motivate Ford employees. In France, shared digital manufacturing workshops at Renault, Seb, Airbus, Snecma and Safran. Decathlon engineers use Lille Fablabs. Already popular in the start-up world, FabLabs emerge in the factory. But still timidly, mostly internally, losing the democratic spirit. defined by MIT. The reason for this is a reluctance to take the risk of copying and the stranglehold that hierarchy has over employees. And yet, to stimulate its capacity for innovation, industry could benefit from taking inspiration from the " makers ". Especially as 2015 is likely to see new initiatives emerge in this area.

Over and above the technical benefits of digital machines - CAD workstations, 3D printers, milling and engraving machines, etc. - these workshops are revolutionising the way we work. -These workshops are revolutionising the way we work. It's a more tangible and agile way of creating, away from the red tape of internal administration. And all the more so because FabLabs are open to the outside world. According to Ford, its staff have proposed 30% of additional innovations since the Techshop was launched.

For Alban Tiberghien, a computer scientist and co-founder of the POC foundation, "Fablabs can speed up the process of prototyping through the cross-fertilisation of ideas. By working outside the walls, one or two days a week, the employees get away from the "consanguinity", the corporate culture. They work with people with less experience, such as the local grandfather or community workers. This mix creates a dynamic and peer training.

By allowing all employees to do - not just R&D engineers - this do it yourselfbecomes a unifying and transgenerational tool, "It is a motivating way to reveal the creative potential of each individual, according to Véronique Routin, Director of Development at Fing. It leads to management that is less compartmentalised by "department" and more horizontal... or even "bottom-up".

In this 21st century craft, industries can also find fruitful collaborations: " Even if they are not the originators of prototypes, large companies are capable of developing ideas on a large scale and reaching the general public, while at the same time promoting more militant and alternative artistic communities." .

Raquel Hadida