Walk Through Orientation

It's very important that we train everyone similarly, in a culture of cleanliness, do-it-yourself, and safety otherwise the hackerspace can go to hell quickly.

Greetings Humans

• Talk briefly about what the new members are interested in.
• Tools they want to use
• Classes they want to have
• Discuss more at the end
• Let this help guide the discussion

Important things

• Encourage new members to be familiar with the following;
  • Wiki
  • Bylaws and Code of Conduct
  • Faq
  • Liability Waiver

Membership

• What level are you and what do you get?
  • $25: Associate Member. Can access during "open hours" or member only hours, can make proposals and vote on them at HYH. Mostly a donation, thank you for helping.
  • $50: Basic Membership the same as Associate with a box for storing stuff, and eligible to be nominated for 24/7 card access
  • $100: Same as Basic Membership, but locker instead of box
• Explain the how they can get a card.
  • Card access is a privilege based on trust, not a right. Come during open hours, make friends, ask for proposal, gets voted on during HYH. If you can't come in during open hours, make friends online and ask for favors. It's tough but we're a community not a business.
• Member money helps us pay the rent, but members still need to contribute to the community; that means helping clean, maintain, help others, and participate in our self-governance otherwise our co-op model won't work. Don't just come in, use the tools, and leave.
• Guest sponsorships
  • Keep an eye on your guests; if you're up front and they're in back breaking a tool, that's not good.
• Make sure new $50 members get a box to store their stuff.

Misc

• Public/private space
  • HeatSync Labs is a shared space. It isn't a public space.
  • We don't guarantee security of stuff in your box & ESPECIALLY not stuff left around the lab!
  • No taking equipment offsite or touching people's boxes/lockers.
  • HeatSync Labs stuff shouldn't be left in your box, your stuff shouldn't be left laying around the lab.
  • If you need to leave something in the lab, put a parking pass on it so we know it's yours and how to contact you.
  • Ideally, propose to the community that it be given space in the lab.
• How to fix/connect to wifi (hacktheplanet)
• Parking (dedicated, hour enforcement, street parking, passes)
• HeatSync is a hackerspace first, coworking space second. Our primary purpose is to provide tools for people to create things, and it can be a loud/dirty place.
  • There are tons of other places with WiFi, desks, couches, and projectors. There's only one place where you can use a bandsaw.

Hack Your Hackerspace Meetings

• Agenda; Intro, old and new business, vote on proposals, working on improving lab
  • Member access card proposals
  • Proposals to keep or remove stuff in the lab
  • Monthly Treasurer report
  • Proposals to the Board/Treasurer
  • Process Lost & Found, Broken Tools, missing consumables
  • Clean up the lab
• To make proposals, just send an email to the google group with the word proposal in the subject.
  • A week before the next meeting, draft proposals are due and a community member should compile the proposals into an agenda for voting.
  • Final/amended proposals are due 24 hours before the meeting.

Making Projects and Using Tools

• Some equipment requires certification before use.
  • Members often teach classes. You can too, if you have a skill you want to share, you don't need to ask permission to teach a class.
• Generally speaking, ask another member prior to using a tool you haven't used in the lab before. We do things differently than at your home, ask so you know how to use OUR tools right.
• Tools and workstations should be kept usable, operable, complete, and clean.
  • If you use a lot of consumables, consider replacing them. We currently have no budgets or caretakers for consumables.
    • Exception: the tear apart bins and scrap; feel free to use for good projects, but no need to replace.
  • Don't render a tool unusable just because you needed to borrow a cable from it, or because you left it a mess.
  • If a tool breaks, put it into the broken tools bin, let people know about it, look into replacement.
• Clean up after yourself -- cleaner than you found it
  • Encourage cleaning culture by offering to clean something with someone ("hey, can you take out the trash with me? Can I help you clean this?")
  • Dozens of people here a day, that's dozens of cups to throw away.
    • How & who to contact when supplies are out
  • Make sure we've always got a good stock of toilet paper & towels in the bathroom so nobody gets trapped

Who is in Charge

• Stations
  • Station Champions are volunteers who lead their station maintenance, question about the station, hosting events related to their station.
• Discussion list is our main method of communicating (link on website)
• Toolshare / members DB is a resource for member info
• Webcams & Video recording -- no expectation of privacy
• Do it yourself: nobody else is going to create it, fix it, clean it, or replace it but you.
• Do-ocracy: the people who get to decide are the people who get off their butts and commit to making something happen.
  • Easiest way to Do-ocracy: announce "Thursday I'm going to work on ____, if you're interested please join me" or "would anyone object if I did ____?" -- better than "what color should the bike shed be?" "who wants to build a bike shed?" -- schedule/plan it like it's a party.

Safety

• WORKSHOP SAFETY: Whenever entering the workshop, Grab a pair of safety glasses by the board next to the doorways and wear them ANYTIME a tool is in use by yourself or by someone else. Always exercise caution, this is a hazardous environment. Always look & listen to check if tools are in use, and do NOT disturb or distract members operating said tools. If you see someone without safety glasses while a tool is in use, hand them a pair of safety glasses.
  • If you have a kid, please accompany them through the shop (even to the bathroom / parking lot) especially if they're prone to running / touching or aren't experienced in behaving safely / paying attention to surroundings. Be proactive and mention any risks you notice to them so they can be aware.
• SAFETY: Every member has the right, maybe even the responsibility to kick someone out for dangerous behavior.
  • Cut power to the building if you need to. Nobody has the right to endanger themselves, others, or the lab with unsafe behavior. All the insurance and waivers and training in the world won't save us, but each member having a safe mindset and speaking up / preventing incidents can.

Zombie Contingency Plans

• Just kidding; where things are in the space
• Stations
• Safe for payments and mail
• Thermostat
  • Turn on/off thermostat to 75', turn off fans
  • Please do not set the thermostat at a temperature that will result in a high electric bill
• Safety glasses: Hung on he wall outside the metal shop and that they are to be worn anytime they are using or around someone using a tool, whether it is a chisel, a lathe, or anything in between.
• Cleaning supplies
• MSDS / Safety Data Sheets.
  • If you bring things and store them in the lab they need to be entered into the Safety Data Sheets
• First aid kit, eye wash, emergency #s
• Broken tools bin
• Sharps bin
• Project parking passes/tickets
• Liability waivers
• Fire extinguishers
• Upstairs storage/IT
• Location of light switches, turn off when leaving
• Door locks (check that front & back are green, not red or off)
• Dumpsters & recycling
• Phone number for Facility Manager on the front and back door
  • Please notify the Facility Manager immediately of anything critical related to the building, or safety. Leaks, electrical problems, damage to building, fires (after calling 911).
  • Also notify of any cleaning supplies that are low.

Wrap up

• Questions? How can I help you get started on something?
  • Ask people what they're working on!
• Welcome and thanks!