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77 | DOING BUSINESS IN CONNECTICUT | 2018 2018 | DOING BUSINESS IN CONNECTICUT | 77 also runs the New England Maker Summit. "The really important piece is the community. We're trying strongly to support a community in Hartford." MakeHaven, meanwhile, started out in 2012 with "no space, no equipment, probably about 15 members – people who committed to pay before there was even a space," Logan recalled. Today, it has about 220 members and operates out of a 5,000-square-foot space on 770 Chapel Street in New Haven, where it moved in January, and is stocked with 3D printers, sewing machines, laser cutters and large woodworking tools. As for projects? In addition to a number of woodworking initiatives, Logan said he's seen members making jewelry, modifying vehicle parts and assembling microprocessors. Going forward, he said they'd like to add metalworking capabilities, expand the space by a few thousand square feet, and add studio spaces and rentable desks to extend into the co-working arena. But most of all, "I want to really increase our events and educational programming," said Logan, who himself was first drawn to learning about 3D printing, what he called initially a "mystery" and now "something magical," with machines that are full of personality – but also a lot of quirks. "I'm excited about the possibilities of these spaces," he said. "What used to be locked up and too expensive has become, 'I can actually do it now.' Now the world can be at your fingertips." Sisitsky agreed, particularly pointing to the impact the spaces can have on Connecticut and its economy. Through a grant from CTNext – which named Hartford/East Hartford a designated "Innovation Place" – MakerspaceCT has already begun to offer programming around 3-D printing and scanning, laser cutting, the Arduino open source electronics platform and the Raspberry Pi computer project platform. The emphasis going forward, Sisitsky said, will continue to be on hardware, prototype creation, electronics, coding, CNC machining, fiber arts, wood and metal fabrication, blacksmithing, ceramics, glass-blowing and other arts. In particular, she pointed to the "tremendous skills gap" in the country right now, with 500,000 unfilled jobs in advanced manufacturing, and said the hope is to begin to alleviate that. "We really are on the precipice of another technological revolution," Sisitsky said. "This is going to impact every one of us in different ways. The maker space is a place for people to learn about all of these amazing technologies." SMALL BUSINESS MakeHaven hosts people working on all kinds of creations, from the technical to the artistic. Collaborative efforts yield impressive results for MakeHaven members.