Northrop Grumman Corp. recently celebrated the grand opening of its Fabrication Laboratory (FabLab) at the company's Space Park facility in Redondo Beach, CA. The 5500-ft² laboratory was inspired and developed by a group of more than 70 employees, providing both engineers and non-engineers a space to share concepts, innovate, and hatch the next big idea. A collaboration space features comfortable chairs, carpeting and a wall that doubles as a whiteboard for brainstorming. The manufacturing space itself boasts a full complement of tools and equipment. Employees can fabricate metal using jet lathes and a jet milling machine. A large selection of saws enables all manner of woodwork. Electronics work can be accomplished using the optical bench and soldering station, while the 3-D printer allows rapid prototyping of parts and models that could impact existing programs.