Author: Scott Walde

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COVID-19 Phase 3

A message from the board of directors:

The situation around the current pandemic is continually evolving and the well-being of our members and community is our priority. As the Government and local business begin re-opening for business, and keeping safety and health in mind, we would like to announce the following changes to our current COVID-19 protocols:

Space Access

As of Monday, June 15, 2020, the space will once again be open to the public. Hack nights are back on and guests are welcome as long as social/physical distancing practices are followed. 

We’re limiting the number of people allowed in the space at one time to help maintain social distancing recommendations. If you do have a project you would like to work on, please coordinate with other members to limit the number of people in the space at one time to 15. Please be respectful of each other’s time and space, keep a distance of 2m between yourself and other members.   

Cleanliness

We have signs up around the space describing how to appropriately wash your hands and have kleenex and sanitizer available. Please use the available resources and keep yourself and others safe. 

If You Have Symptoms

Please do not enter the space, go home and practice self-isolation.

Workshops

Workshops are back on with some restrictions to allow for social distancing practices. Please check back for upcoming workshops!

Thank you!

At our AGM in March, we gave our vision for growth for this fiscal year.  Little did we know that a few short days later the world would come to a grinding halt and stay that way for months.  While we haven’t been able to pursue any growth, we were able to stay in limited operation and remain in a safe financial position.  Our sincere thanks to all of you who have continued your membership throughout this difficult time.  It is because of you that we will continue to have a makerspace as we emerge from the pandemic restrictions.

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Virtual Hack Nights!

As I write this, there is no clear plan for when we might be able to re-open our weekly open door nights. Since community has always been a strong point at Saskatoon TechWorks, we hope to maintain some of that by hosting “Virtual Hack Nights” on Zoom. Watch the “events” page for links each week to our Zoom meeting. Whether or not you are an active member, please join us. Show us something you have been working on. Or, simply hang out with us.

I hope to see you “there.”

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COVID-19 Update – Board of Directors

The situation that we are currently facing together is unprecedented and the well-being of our members and community is our priority. Here are the adjustments we are making for the short term:

Space Access

As of Thursday, March 19, 2020, the space will be closed to the public. As a result, hack night (Tuesday “Open Door”) is cancelled until further notice. 

We are limiting the number of people allowed in the space at one time to help maintain social distancing recommendations. If you do have a project you would like to work on, please coordinate with other members to limit the number of people in the space at one time to 6. Please be respectful of each others’ time and space. Keep a distance of 2 metres between yourself and other members.   

Cleanliness

We have signs up around the space describing how to appropriately wash your hands and have tissues and sanitizer available. Please use the available resources and keep yourself and others safe. 

If You Have Symptoms

Please do not enter the space. Go home and practice self-isolation.

Workshops

Until further notice workshops at the space are unavailable. We are looking into the possibility of hosting online workshops and are welcome to your ideas!

Stay Tuned

New information is available to us every day. With that information, we are making decisions to support the safety and well-being of our members. We will continue to update you as the situation changes.

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Upcoming Workshops (May, June, July 2019)

July 11th: CNC Ground School

At CNC Ground School you will learn the theory required to generate GCODE files appropriate for Goliath. (Our CNC Router)  You will learn about feeds and speeds and how to use the VCarvePro software available to our members. This class is a prerequisite for on-machine training. There is no charge for this class.

July 18th and 25th: Arduino 101

This 6 hour workshop will introduce you to the many forms of input and output on an Arduino compatible microcontroller. You will learn:

  • Digital inputs and outputs
  • Analog inputs
  • PWM outputs
  • Digital Communications

The price for the workshop includes an Arduino compatible UNO, breadboard, wires, and a variety of devices to demonstrate and experiment with different styles of Input and Output.

$90

July 6: Build It – Tiny Die

Build your own Electronic Die.  Learn to solder and to load firmware onto an ATTiny85 microcontroller.  (No programming required, but it is reprogrammable if you so desire.) $60

June 22nd: Soap Making

Learn to make soap at Saskatoon Techworks. ALL required materials will be supplied for this workshop, and you will go home with uncured soap that can be cut into about nine generous-sized bars of Hand-Crafted Natural Soap. $60

June 13th and 20th: Electronics From Zero

This five hour workshop (two Thursday evenings) will take the participant with no experience with electronics and will teach the basics of voltage, current, and resistance.  You will learn to build basic circuits and will calculate and take measurements on those circuits to confirm your calculations. $60

May 30th: Soap Making (over)

Learn to make soap at Saskatoon Techworks. ALL required materials will be supplied for this workshop, and you will go home with uncured soap that can be cut into about nine generous-sized bars of Hand-Crafted Natural Soap. $60

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Open House!

Do you enjoy making things? Do you ever wish you had the room or cash to buy expensive tools? Do you wish you had more friends who shared your passion for making cool things? Check out Saskatoon TechWorks, Saskatoon’s premier maker community.

Our doors will be open to the public on June 8th, 2019, 10am-5pm. Members will be available to show you our shop and answer your questions.

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New Software!


Saskatoon TechWorks is now the proud licensee of VCarve Pro Makerspace Edition.  What does this mean to you?  As a TechWorks member, you can download the trial version of VCarve Pro and enter our Makerspace ID. (Ask us for it.)  After entering our Makerspace ID, you can prepare your CNC job.  That version will not save your toolpaths but you can do everything else to get your files ready for the CNC router.  Save your project and bring your .crv file to the space, load it up in our “Master” copy, export the gcode, and you’re ready to make your masterpiece on our CNC router!

For more information, please visit https://www.vectric.com/makerspace.html.

(Note: Our license says that the toolpath files are only for use on the CNC equipment at our space.  I’m not sure how they or we would enforce that, but you should know that that is the rules.)

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Workshops!

Upcoming Workshops at Saskatoon TechWorks:

June 14th, 7pm: Soap Making

Learn how to make cold process soap.  Everything you need is provided and you will go home with uncured soap that can be cut into 9 bath-sized bars.  For more information and to sign up: https://sktechworks.ca/product/workshop-soap-20180614/

June 21st and 28th, 7pm: Electronics From Zero

This two day workshop will teach you about voltage, current and resistance, and how to use a digital multimeter.  You will build simple circuits with resistors to demonstrate that Ohm’s Law works.  Then, on the second day, you will learn about capacitors, diodes, LEDs, transistors, and inductors.  If you have your own DMM please bring it.  For more information and to sign up: https://sktechworks.ca/product/workshop-efz-20180621/

July 19th and 26th, 7pm: Arduino 101

This two day workshop will introduce you to the many forms of input and output on an Arduino compatible microcontroller. You will learn:

  • Digital inputs and outputs
  • Analog inputs
  • PWM outputs
  • Digital Communications

For more information and to sign up: https://sktechworks.ca/product/workshop-a101-20180719/

Making Soap
Making Soap