Ellen Ciurczak

USA TODAY NETWORK - Mississippi

A 3D printer, desktop CNC milling machine, laser cutter, vinyl and paper cutter — Pine Belt residents may not know what all these devices can do, but they can soon find out because Southern Miss is making them available to the public.

These machines are known as digital fabrication tools, and they can be found in a place called Eagle Maker Hub — Southern Miss’ first publicly available makerspace.

The space is the brainchild of Anna Wan, assistant professor in mathematics.

“A makerspace is just a space where things are made,” she said. “Makerspaces connect people who want to make things with people who have the knowledge to make the things and the tools (to do it).”

Zach Cochran is a 3D printing and testing specialist at Southern Miss. He said you can make any three-dimensional object with a 3D printer.

“If you can design it, you can 3D print it,” he said. “There’s a lot of design freedom with it.

“We’ve printed tooling parts for Nissan in Canton or a patent idea for a local inventor. Whatever they can envision.”

Cochran thinks Eagle Maker Hub, open to the public beginning in August, will be especially fun for children.

“For kids and teenagers to see the technology — they get really excited about it,” he said. “Something in their mind — we can make it a physical entity.”

Wan said it’s an American tradition to be a maker.

“George Washington’s wife made quilts,” she said. “That’s the technology they had in that day.

“Now with a 3D printer, you can design the part, print it in a few hours and test the part.”