CNM Ingenuity’s FUSE Makerspace provides education and access to state-of-the-art fabrication equipment to anyone who wants it

On any given weekday afternoon at FUSE Makerspace, the space is humming with activity. Someone is learning to use the metal lathe for a personal construction project. Several 3D printers are churning out branded bottle openers. A team of architects is collaborating on a fabrication project for a client. Many small businesses and entrepreneurs in the area have become regulars at FUSE. Electric Playhouse, an immersive experience production company, was using FUSE to build a LED-lined tunnel as an entryway to their new space. “It allows so many more people to create things, interact with other creators, and make things together” says Wesley Eccles, one of Electric Playhouse’s designers. He says that they have worked with various collaborators there, especially the architects at Cherry See Reames, who work on fabrication projects at FUSE frequently. 

The FUSE Makerspace is revolutionary for entrepreneurs and creators in Albuquerque. For those that use it, FUSE is often the difference between being able to make something yourself locally and having to outsource production—or not being able to make it at all.

Originally opened on the CNM campus in 2016, FUSE is a fabrication lab with equipment for designing, building and tinkering now located on the Innovate ABQ campus. The two-story lab features a large open room on the main floor with countless whirring machines and sparks flying from a robotic welding arm in the back. To one corner you’ll see a large table with people sketching and workshopping ideas together, often people from different companies or creative teams combining their efforts.This space offers CNM students and local entrepreneurs alike access to a full woodshop, laser engravers, several 3D printers, a vinyl printer and cutter, and other pieces of equipment that can’t be found anywhere else in Albuquerque. 

For companies like Electric Playhouse and Cherry See Reames, FUSE has been a huge asset in their production. But for some businesses, FUSE plays a vital role in getting launched. BennuBio, a BioTech company developing a cytometry instrument to rapidly detect cells and particles, was able to test and prove their concept using FUSE’s state-of-the-art equipment, rather than investing hundreds of thousands of dollars up front. Build With Robots, another small company that uses the makerspace, also got their start at FUSE, and even rents office space in the building. They built a robotic welding arm that is now a part of FUSE’s metal shop, and are currently working with Sherwin Williams to design a house-painting robot. 

Though the makerspace was originally meant for CNM students, that has changed, says Dena Thomas Aouassou, the Makerspace Director at FUSE. “Anybody from the community is able to use a space, but they need to take a class to know the basic operation and safety of the equipment they're going to use, and then they can come in and pay for a membership ($75/month for individuals, $250/month for businesses). If people are unable to pay for a membership we do have some access funds which individuals can apply for, too.” They have several equipment intro classes every week, most of which cost somewhere between $49 and $75 and take up to three hours.

FUSE is a project of CNM Ingenuity, the nonprofit arm of CNM. Their 501c3 status means that they were able to open with funding from Intel, which also sponsors a regular class there called Intel Future Skills. This free seasonal class teaches basic technology skills such as 3D modeling and printing along with business and life skills, intended to encourage students to seek further education and employment in tech industries. Local funding also comes from PNM, Nusenda Foundation and the Albuquerque Community Foundation, among others.

Moving FUSE downtown to Innovate ABQ from the CNM campus in 2017 was an obvious choice, says Aouassou. “We really want to be in the innovation district so that people can access the space from different industries and help promote entrepreneurship in the community.” Being off the campus has made them more accessible and allowed them some more space to grow, as well.

That accessibility means more than just a central location in the city, too. Manny Rubio, the Program Manager at FUSE, says “we just offer a way for anybody to come and actually learn how to use the equipment, versus having to spend two to four years in a college to learn how to do something. We get you going in a matter of weeks, depending on which classes you want to take—but the amount of experience that can get in just those weeks is huge.” For people who don’t have the time or money to spend years on a degree track before they turn their dream into a business, FUSE is an ideal alternative educational space that can fit whatever schedule or budget its members might have.

FUSE has been adapting with the feedback of students and entrepreneurs. Since opening in 2017, they’ve expanded their hours of operation, staying open on Sundays and during the holidays. Based on additional feedback and member demand, FUSE will be open seven days a week beginning in January 2020. 

Buying, housing, and maintaining even a fraction of the equipment that FUSE Makerspace has costs a small fortune that would be impossible for a startup or entrepreneur to manage on their own. But by running the organization as a nonprofit and making it available to the whole city, FUSE has shown that the Albuquerque small business community is immeasurably stronger when they combine their resources and work together. 

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Fuse Makerspace is housed on the Innovate ABQ campus. It plays a key role in Albuquerque’s Innovation District, which stretches from Downtown to the University and Central to Lomas. The intention of an Innovation DIstrict in Albuquerque is to create a compact, accessible, and technically-wired corridor to support the growth of startups, entrepreneurs, and students. Over the last eight years, the Innovation District in Albuquerque has seen new mixed-use housing, office, and retail spaces (notably in the new Innovate ABQ and One Central sites), along with an unprecedented co-location of UNM, CNM, and outreach offices for our national labs.