Facebook provides 3,000-square-foot woodshop for the use of employees at the company’s Menlo Park campus.
Situated on Facebook’s sprawling campus in Menlo Park, Calif., is a beautifully designed facility where social media meets sawdust. Known simply as the Wood Shop at Menlo Park Campus (MPK), the 3,000-square-foot, professionally outfitted shop was designed to inspire employees interested in stretching their creative muscles in new ways through woodworking. To read more about the shop and see pictures, click here
“The overarching idea is to provide employees with an enjoyable diversion from their daily activities and to inspire creativity apart from their computers, tablets and smartphones,” said Robbie Pinaula,Project Lead at the Menlo Park Campus. “MPK has already attracted about 350 Facebook employees who are having a blast making everything from cutting boards to fine furniture for their homes.”
The Wood Shop opened in February and is loaded with state-of-the-art woodworking equipment, including a number of centerpiece machines from Laguna Tools. “We have two Laguna Tools SUV Bandsaws, an 8″ HH Jointer, a 5HP Dust Collector and two air circulators for the entire shop,” said Robbie, who spent about a year and a half developing, configuring and fine-tuning a prototype of the shop before assembling the real thing at the Menlo Park Campus. According to Robbie, a safety monitor and two full-time instructors are available to answer questions, teach classes and provide pointers at MPK. “We’ve taught about 80 different courses so far, and I’m sure we’ll see an increase as the holidays approach and employees start thinking about
making holiday gifts.”
He added that MPK even has its own wholesale supply store, where employees can purchase lumber, finishes, fasteners, glues and other items they need to complete their projects – use of the facilities and machines are free. “There are no restrictions on what they can build, but we encourage them to start with relatively small projects until they get a better understanding of the tools and
begin to hone their woodworking skills.”