TAP:lab

It’s been a year of tukutuku at TAP lab! Mike kicked it off in mid 2025 by designing a mini tukutuku panel to laser cut then weave. A month or so after that Keri from Whare Hau Ako came into TAP lab wanting to cut Tukutuku panels to use in community workshops. It was important […]

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Earlier this year Donna brought her desktop CNC machine into TAP lab to get some help getting it working. Donna's husband Bill was a very talented wood carver and had bought it to help lessen his workload as he was getting older. Unfortunately he had died before getting it running.

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Connie was a lifelong resident of Te Atatū Peninsula and teaches kākahu (weaving koworai and harakeke flax) at the local community hub.  Already an accomplished artist she is expanding her horizons into the digital space. Working alongside TAP Lab members she is learning how to digitise her ideas so they can be used with equipment in the […]

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Donna-Maree Smith had a brain meningioma removed 3 years ago, forcing her to have to relearn how to do everyday things. Despite those challenges she proves time and time again that nothing can slow her down.   She came to TAP Lab full of ambition to make her own earrings after trying to attend (but missing […]

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Auckland council had a number of devices that were being retired from official service. Our IT guy Jaco not wanting to waste this potential asset took them in to refurbish and upgrade. Members of TAP lab can now borrow the refurbished to practice and work on their projects when they are not in the workshop. […]

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Rohan, “I designed the Bloom Effect tree in the form of a stylized Pohutukawa tree.   The Pohutukawa can live for up to 1,000 years, growing in what are often severely adverse conditions. They cling to windswept cliffs with their gnarled roots. They battle a lifetime of strong winds of the southern oceans and yet they […]

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This year the library has a pōhutukawa tree for guests to sit with and reflect on the past years events. We laser engraved the flowers so people could come and write names and messages for loved ones that have passed.

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We had an enquiry on our Facebook page about 3D printed nose clips to stop glasses from fogging up when you wear a face mask. After a quick google we found an article about someone with a 3D printer in in Palmerston North who had been making them for his community AND we found a […]

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Wearing a face mask all day is uncomfortable at the best of times, so we found an ear-saving device that can be easily 3D printed, provided free by user Georgeo_3D on the Thingiverse website.

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Gerry is a very experienced woodworker and normally does all his puzzles and games from his own workshop. We were able to use the laser cutter to help with a few aspects of his process to leave him more time to focus on the parts he loves. It was great to see that technology doesn't have to take over but can be utilised to support traditional woodworking.

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