Gharbiya FabLab

About This Project

Gharbiya FabLab is a comprehensive digital fabrication laboratory documentation website I built to serve as a central knowledge hub for our community. This project demonstrates my ability to create scalable, organized documentation platforms that support community learning and equipment management.

The Challenge

Our FabLab needed a unified platform to:

• Organize Complex Information: Document equipment, software, and procedures in an intuitive structure
• Enable Community Collaboration: Make it easy for members to contribute knowledge and share projects
• Scale Gracefully: Support growth from initial documentation to comprehensive resource library
• Maintain Consistency: Ensure all documentation follows consistent standards and styling
• Deploy Seamlessly: Automate deployment without requiring complex infrastructure

My Approach

Content Architecture

I chose Astro with Starlight as the foundation because:

• Static Site Generation: Fast, secure, and SEO-friendly for documentation
• Built-in Navigation: Starlight provides intuitive sidebar navigation automatically
• Markdown-First: Content creators focus on knowledge, not formatting
• Extensibility: Easy to add custom pages and components

The site structure includes:

• Equipment Guides: Detailed procedures for each machine (laser cutter, 3D printer, vinyl cutter, CNC router)
• Software Resources: Instructions for CAD/CAM tools and machine-specific applications
• Learning Materials: Educational challenges and tutorials for various skill levels
• Inventory Management: Searchable listings of components and materials
• Community Projects: Gallery of member work and team achievements
• Team Profiles: Member bios and contact information

Custom Extensions

I extended Starlight with:

• Team Management System: Built custom TypeScript data structure (src/data/team.json and src/lib/team.ts) for storing and managing team member profiles
• Dedicated Team Page: Created a custom Astro component to display member cards with contact information
• Enhanced Styling: Added UI dependencies to create polished member profile cards

Deployment Strategy

Implemented fully automated deployment:

• GitHub Actions Workflow: Triggers automatically on pushes to main branch
• Build Pipeline: Automated Astro build process
• GitHub Pages: Zero-cost hosting with automatic HTTPS
• Link Validation: Built-in checks to catch broken internal links before deployment

Technical Highlights

Content Organization

• Hierarchical Structure: Organized documentation into logical sections (equipment, software, learning, projects)
• Metadata Management: Leveraged Frontmatter for structured content with tags and categories
• Search Optimization: Configured for discoverable content across equipment types and topics

Data Management

• Typed Data Layer: Used TypeScript for type-safe team member data
• Reusable Components: Built modular components for team cards and project showcases
• Data-Driven Pages: Dynamic team page that pulls from centralized data source

Community Features

• Easy Contribution: GitHub-based workflow makes it simple for community members to contribute
• Version Control: All content tracked with git for history and collaboration
• Pull Request Workflow: Documentation changes can be reviewed before publication

Key Learning Outcomes

Documentation Design

I deepened my understanding of:

• Creating information architectures for complex topics
• Writing clear, accessible technical documentation
• Structuring content for both beginners and experienced users
• Building navigation that scales with growing content

Static Site Generation

• Leveraging Starlight’s conventions for efficient documentation sites
• Optimizing build times and performance for large content libraries
• Managing custom data layers within static site generators
• Implementing automated deployment workflows

Community Building

• Designing systems that encourage participation and contributions
• Creating accessible onboarding for new community members
• Building maintainable systems that don’t require centralized management
• Enabling decentralized knowledge sharing

Challenges I Overcame

Complex Information Organization: Documentation for 4+ machines with different workflows and software. I created a hierarchical structure with consistent naming and page templates to help users find information quickly.

Community Contribution Barriers: Making it easy for non-technical team members to contribute. I established clear naming conventions and provided templates that reduce the cognitive load of formatting.

Automated Quality Assurance: Ensuring broken links and outdated information don’t get published. I configured GitHub Actions to validate all internal links before deployment.

Team Profile Management: Keeping member information up-to-date without manual updates. I built a data-driven system where team data is stored in a single source of truth.

Impact & Results

This project demonstrates my ability to:

• Design information architectures for technical audiences
• Build scalable documentation platforms
• Implement automated deployment and quality assurance
• Create systems that enable community participation
• Balance flexibility with consistent structure

The site now serves as a comprehensive resource that reduces onboarding time for new members and creates a culture of documented knowledge within our FabLab community.