Graduate and undergraduate students use the school’s fabrication shops in support of studio and course work assignments, as well as for independent projects. They include fully equipped facilities for building models, fabricating furniture, sculpting, and exploring building systems. Students work with a wide variety of materials, including wood and wood products, plastics, and ferrous and nonferrous metals. Beyond the normal fabricating equipment and tools usually found in wood and metal shops, the school’s equipment includes both a high-power metal-cutting laser and a highpowered laser for woods and plastics, a water jet cutter, multiple large- and small-bed 3-axis CNC mills, 4-axis CNC mills, a jewelry-grade wax 3d printer, a 5-axis robotic 3d printer, and seven robots in the robotics lab. Students with shop experience may apply to the fabrication shop’s coordinator for positions as shop monitors.

All incoming students take the Summer Shops Techniques Course during the week before classes begin. This intensive course teaches students how to work safely in the shop while exposing them to a wide range of tools and procedures. During the year, staff is available to assist students with their projects. Individual instruction is always available from the staff and monitors. First-year M.Arch. I students use the fabrication shops to fabricate elements for the Building Project.

Each semester, YSoA hires shop monitors to operate the shop on nights and weekends. We invite interested candidates to submit their applications, detailing any relevant experience. Applications can be returned either via email or by delivering a physical copy to the shop.

Please note that all new shop monitors are required to complete both monitor training and First Aid/CPR/AED certification. These training sessions are typically scheduled on a weekend and require a full workday to complete but remain valid for two years.

For additional information and the application form, see Lab Documents.