# Key Points from IRC Log

• Discussion of Flexible Manufacturing Systems (FMS) and how they could be used to automate production of complex items, with participants sharing resources about systems that combine multiple CNC machines with part handling devices like robots to handle families of parts.

• Debate about mobile vs. stationary fab labs, with participants discussing the advantages of mobility (not being "stuck" in one place) versus the practical challenges of transporting equipment, referencing a mobile fab lab built in a trailer by CBA in 2007.

• Exploration of electrochemical machining techniques, specifically "reverse electroplating" or shaped tube electrolyte machining, where electricity and electrolytes are used to precisely etch away material, with discussion of using thin tubes like hypodermic needles for precision work.

• Mention of Germany's first fab lab at RWTH Aachen University (http://hci.rwth-aachen.de/fablab), showing the spread of the fab lab movement internationally.

• Brief discussion about extracting gold from microprocessors using chemicals like HCl and sulfuric acid, with warnings about the dangers of handling such chemicals and the limited economic value of the gold content.

• Reference to the definition of Open Source Hardware being formalized in 2009, with a link to a Make Magazine article documenting this development.