Some 20 visitors a day enter the Lavarack Barracks MakerSpace, where Townsville-based soldiers kick innovative goals to assist in their duties.
When it first opened in November 2022, the MakerSpace led to humble achievements with most soldiers learning to program the laser cutter and etch a section logo into their metal water bottles.
Now when locally-based soldiers need to more easily see into mortar sights at night or an easier way to load tools on a Chinook – it was MakerSpace that helped turn their ideas into reality.
Townsville MakerSpace site supervisor Michael Ellison said many ideas were then further developed by Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group (CASG) and Defence Science and Technology Group to explore potential uses.
“There’s a slight panic that goes through a soldier’s head when they hear colonels and scientists from CASG will be calling them regarding their idea,” Mr Ellison said.
“Once they’re over the shock, soldiers want to be kept in the loop with back-briefs of how it’s going.
“About a week later they come back with six more to do the engraving. Then it turns into a platoon-worth coming in. Then they’re making section stickers and heat transfers for undershirts.
“Most of the time they come back with stuff they’ve thought of once they realise there’s a laser cutter, 3D printer and a CNC router on base.”
Mr Ellison said there is no rank in MakerSpace and that’s the way site supervisors want things, meaning solders learn new skills without any pressure to perform.
“You can see the calm, relaxed enjoyment they have when they’re tinkering with something they love doing or learning,” he said.
“Even if it’s something basic like learning geometry on a laser-cutting program, once they figure it out you can see their eyes light up.”

What is MakerSpace?
- The MakerSpace houses tools such as 3D printers, a CNC (computer numerical control) router and laser cutter.
- While not having strict military applications, it was the underlying design skills that were important to foster.
- There’s no rank in MakerSpace, meaning majors and lance corporals have worked together on projects not knowing each other’s rank.
MakerSpace milestones include:
- The space allowed a mortar team to better illuminate the inside of their C2 sights using a device with 3D-printed plastic and rubber seals, AA batteries and laser-cut clear acrylic to refract a red LED.
- Another team of aviation soldiers proposed mounting their heavy, fly-away toolkits on an uncrewed ground vehicle – meaning it could be easily loaded and unloaded from a Chinook.
- Soldiers from 3RAR’s mortar platoon sometimes had difficulty attaching Cyalume sticks to mortar aiming posts for night firing without ruining the mortar’s zero. So they prototyped and manufactured a Cyalume holder, with a small window that opens and closes, to clip on the aiming post. 3RAR’s mortar platoon printed 30 before 1RAR’s mortarmen printed their own, along with 3RAR’s DFSW platoon.
- Another notable concept was retractable cam nets for MAN trucks that allow for rapid disassembly to move away from attacks. A 2RAR soldier wanted a MOLE sheath for attaching mission-essential equipment to his rappelling belt. So he brought a sheet of Multicam Cordura, took it to MakerSpace and used the laser cutter to make MOLE eyelets, then sowed on reverse Velcro. “He was just thinking ‘how do I make my life easier getting in and out of helicopters’,” Mr Ellison said. “He came back almost immediately to make three more for his mates.”
- Some soldiers use the equipment to make things easier at work by laser-cutting acrylic navigational aids and weapon range protractors to overlay on maps.
