It moves beyond the simple sharing of blueprints, lowering barriers to innovation and enabling earlier testing of ideas for adaptable, repairable, and sustainable products. While rooted in the tradition of FabLabs and community workshops, its contemporary relevance lies in supporting SMEs and startups seeking flexible, resource-efficient market entry.
“Open” in this context means selective sharing to accelerate development, promote feedback, and use modular tools that can be replicated or improved. Practical applications include publishing designs under permissive licenses, utilising standard components, and leveraging shared labs for rapid prototyping. This approach enhances learning speed, reduces costs, and aligns with the principles of green transformation by reducing waste and fostering local, small-scale production.
For early-stage innovators, it provides an alternative to capital-intensive R&D, enabling them to experiment, collaborate, and scale without heavy infrastructure investment.
Ultimately, open manufacturing offers a pathway to more resilient, efficient, and sustainable innovation ecosystems, as promoted by initiatives like Greene 4.0.