After Mayor Emanuel used a power tool to cut a metal ribbon at their opening, mHub has been the facility for product innovation and manufacturing in Chicago—a space to bring together the next generation of thinkers, makers and technologists, as well as researchers, investors and entrepreneurs under one roof. The building, which housed the Milwaukee Iron and Metal Company in 1916, and more recently Motorola Mobility’s prototyping center, has a long history in advancing Chicago’s manufacturing industry. It would seem those are big shoes to fill, but fostering a thoughtful and engaged community through hard work, inspiring mentorship and highly educational workshops is how ideas are born and grown. It’s done within a 63,000-square-foot facility that contains ten fabrication labs, including electronics, plastic fabrication, metals, textiles and rapid prototyping, as well as a microfactory for small production runs. It’s fitting for mHub to carry on that legacy. (Vasia Rigou)
