David Baker teaches children about design and manufacturing by making egg cups

How to use desktop thermoforming to teach product design to young people

London based charity, Design Education CIC, support the next generation of designers and makers. They used the Mayku FormBox during a series of hands-on workshops for primary school students.

“Our FormBox has proved to be a versatile, flexible and highly portable tool to teach about both the thermoplastic performance of plastic polymers and the technology of vacuum forming. It has formed the centrepiece of our FantasticPlasticDays with both Primary school pupils and disabled young adults” - David Baker, Managing Director, Design CIC

Design CIC wanted to create a set of interactive workshops that teach students between the ages of 8-12 about innovation and product design through vacuum forming.

How the Mayku FormBox was used to engage young people in design and manufacturing

Design CIC’s mission is to inspire the makers of tomorrow. The FormBox is the first vacuum former designed for the classroom. The simple user interface means students can use the FormBox independently. Recognising this Design CIC invested in several machines for their workshop. Their work engages students in independent learning and provides an inspirational, hands-on approach to product design. Encouraging discussions around the wider uses of plastics and how a more sustainable future could be developed.

Using a lesson plan from Mayku’s curriculum, Design CICs workshop focused around students forming and customising an egg cup using a form taken from the FormBox’s starter kit. These kits are included with every FormBox and are designed to get everyone making straight out of the box, whilst also teaching users to design for the FormBox in the future.

Students worked in groups of three to form their egg cups. To give each student the best experience, everyone was given a few cast sheets to experiment with before finally forming. This gave each learner the chance to perfect forming through trial and error. The students loved being able to use the machine more than once to adapt their forming process before creating a final form.Once this task was completed the class discussed the materials, such as concrete or Jesmonite, that could be used with the molds to reproduce the egg cups en masse. After this the students were able to customise the molds they had made with colored pens and paint which they could then take home.

How the Mayku FormBox helped teach STEAM topics

Hands on learning

Learners are inspired to use the machine to produce their own products. Having multiple vacuum formers means each student can get hands on with their making and even try a few iterations

Affordable and long lasting

At £599 the FormBox is an affordable addition to any classroom. With a two year warranty, you’re covered should anything go wrong. Plus, you can get access to our team of creatives for technical support and sample lesson plans.

Inspires creative thinking

When working with students across different age ranges creating workshops that are inclusive to all needs is vital. The FormBox is suitable for independent use by children of 8 and above. Learners are inspired to experiment with product design and prototyping within a safe environment.

Want to learn more? You can follow @TeamMayku on social media, join our Facebook Group, the Mayku Community or request to Speak to a Specialist at anytime to find out how you could use a FormBox for your next project.