Barmouth Town Council’s new Makerspace and business support centre has officially opened in the town.
The project was formally opened on Monday, 30 October by Barmouth mayor Cllr Owain Pritchard.
The event was attended by local business owners, council representatives, members of the public of all ages, MP Liz Saville Roberts and some of the volunteers who helped set up the centre.
Situated just off the High Street, Tanio Bermo offers craft and design equipment to encourage creativity, new skills and new businesses.
Currently open for drop-ins on Saturdays and for scheduled workshops on other days, the town council hope to be able to open for more hours as more people get involved.
The equipment is available to use for free, and all anyone is asked for is a contribution towards material expenses.
The formal opening was held during an open afternoon to demonstrate the equipment available to use.
The venue’s 3D printer was running and gathered a fascinated audience who had not seen one operating before. There was much interest in how it constructs 3D models from a thin filament of plastic. This can be used for prototyping new designs, printing spare parts for household items and also just to explore design and creativity.
Also in operation was the vinyl cutter and the sublimation printer, several of the children in attendance drew pictures that were transferred to mugs. The project has computers and printers available to support local businesses too.
The next planned workshop, called Makerspace Christmas, will take place on Tuesday afternoons from 21 November.
This will be an opportunity to make Christmas gifts, cards and decorations instead of buying them. At the first workshop members of ADRA, the Welfare team and Energy Team from Gwynedd Council will also be present to offer advice and support with cost of living issues.
These workshops will be from 3.30pm to 6pm.
Tanio Bermo is a project funded by Barmouth Town Council for the benefit of the community in and around Barmouth.
It has been set up with grant funding from Barmouth Town Council and Menter Môn and also with generous support from Barmouth Businesses and trades.