Designing The Perfect Workshop
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Dave from DesignSpark
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Who doesn't love a good workshop, and at Kids Invent Stuff we are lucky enough to have two workshop spaces that we work out of. One (our main workshop) in Cornwall and the other is Ruth's workshop (in her garden) up in Sheffield.
Parts list
| Qty | Product | Part number | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Numatic Henry HVR160 Floor Vacuum Cleaner Vacuum Cleaner for Dry Vacuuming, 10m Cable, 230V, UK Plug | 174-7931 | |
| 1 | RS PRO 54 Piece HSS Thread Tap & Die Set | 668-1129 | |
| 1 | RS PRO Steel Wall Panel Tool Holder | 178-3336 | |
| 1 | RS PRO Steel Floor Standing Storage Cabinet, 430 x 300 x 140mm | 178-3365 | |
| 1 | RS PRO 65L Blue PP Attached Lid Container, 600mm x 400mm x 365mm | 178-3355 | |
| 1 | T.T.M.C Metal Guillotine with 300 mm Blade | 546-9684 | |
| 1 | RS PRO 10 piece Hex Key Set, T Shape 2.5mm Ball End | 537-811 | |
| 1 | RS PRO 94 Piece Mechanical Tool Kit with Case | 734-8889 | |
| 1 | RS PRO 33 Drawer Storage Unit, 636mm x 600mm x 170mm | 519-374 | |
| 1 | RS PRO 7 drawer Steel WheeledTool Chest, 970mm x 630mm x 450mm | 753-1589 | |
| 1 | RS PRO 3 drawer SteelTool Chest, 365mm x 620mm x 440mm | 768-1678 | |
Cornwall Workshop:
We moved into our Cornwall workshop just before lockdown (March 2020) and it needed some love. Unfortunately, it wasn’t until over a year later that we were able to give it a makeover. We filmed the whole process:
After working in the space for a year (without it being set up properly) we knew what would work and what wouldn’t. We also wanted to add some more storage, colour and organise all our tools. RS Components kindly supported the makeover and you can see what they sent us HERE
We separated the ‘clean’ and ‘dirty side’, up cycling some filing cabinets, finally built the toilet wall and added some new workbenches to make the space a lovely place to work.
In the parts list we’ve listed some of the products we love and used to organise the workshop- from tool boards to plastic draws and boxes with lids.
We also added metal to half the workbench to make it easier to weld.
Sheffield Workshop:
This was a different project, during lockdown when Ruth couldn’t travel she realised that she needed a workshop space at home and so set about building a shed and turning it into a workshop- from scratch!
You can see how she did it:
Loosely based on Colin Furze's award-winning workshop, the workshop is 3.7m by 3.7m. It has built-in workbenches, as well as power and insulation. We’ve used the workshop for a few builds on our channel and although it's smaller than our workshop in Cornwall it's a great space to make.
You can see some of the tools and storage solutions Ruth chose from RS Components HERE
Setting up your workshop space can make projects flow so much easier. Here are some of the things we learnt on the way:
- You can never have too many power sockets. Think about the tools you have and which sockets they will use. Also plan in a few more than you need. Sockets up a height can also be useful (on beams or in the roof).
- If you weld or create dust in your workshop then having storage with lids makes it much easier to keep things clean.
- Having the tools you need regularly in easy to reach places- a tool wall or storage rack. Make sure you don’t block these.
- A label maker is your friend, label everything so you and others can find it
- Sort tools together- have a draw for things that ‘measure’ ‘cut’ or ‘stick’ to keep similar things together
- make it a space that you enjoy working in!
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