RFFLabs

Name

RFFLabs

Legal name

RFFLabs - Réseau Français des FabLabs, Espaces et Communautés du Faire

Website

https://rfflabs.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Guéret

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Annual membership fees structured by 5 colleges with specific tariffs per college, valid for 12 months on a rolling basis
2. Public Grants: Support from FDVA (Fonds de Développement de la Vie Associative) and ANCT (Agence Nationale de la Cohésion des Territoires)
3. European Funding: European Union funding support for international cooperation projects
4. Private Foundation Grants: Support from Fondation de France, Fondation Orange, and Fondation Michelin

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

RFFLabs is the French national association that federates FabLabs, makerspaces and making communities across France. It provides paying members with access to open-source collaborative tools (Mattermost, NextCloud, GoGoCarto mapping, Communecter, NodeBB forum), organizes annual events (OctoberMake, Summer Seminar), runs collaborative projects (Communs d'Urgence, Extreme Defi, international cooperations), and produces practical guides for the maker community.

Product overview

RFFLabs (Réseau Français des FabLabs, Espaces et Communautés du Faire) is a national association created in 2015 that federates FabLabs, makerspaces, and maker communities across France. Rather than a traditional software product, RFFLabs operates as a member organization offering collaborative tools (Mattermost, NextCloud), interactive cartography services (GOGOCARTO, Communecter), and an employment forum. The network organizes two flagship annual events: OctoberMake in October and a Summer Seminar in June. RFFLabs coordinates collaborative projects including Communs d'Urgence (crisis preparedness), Extreme Defi (intermediate vehicles with ADEME), and International Cooperations (with Vulca, VoW, ReFFAO). The organization produces practical resources such as risk prevention guides, accessible lab guides, ecological practices guides, and white papers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• OctoberMake Annual flagship event held each October bringing together active RFFLabs members for networking, brainstorming, training, and the annual Ordinary General Assembly. For members and the broader maker community.
• Summer Seminar (Séminaire d'été) Annual June off-site meeting where the Collégial Council members and operational team work on strategic topics and scout locations for the next OctoberMake edition. For governance members and staff.
• Collaborative Tools Suite (Mattermost & NextCloud) Member-only access to Mattermost for community communication and NextCloud for document storage, file sharing, and member resources. For paying RFFLabs members.
• Employment Forum (Forum Emploi) Online job-board category on the NodeBB forum (forum.rfflabs.fr) connecting FabLabs and makerspaces with potential employees across France. For FabLab employers and job seekers.
• Communs d'Urgence Federation-led project (with Fondation de France support) to prepare citizen mobilization for future crises, building on the maker community response during the COVID-19 crisis. For French civic and maker communities.
• Extreme Defi Federation project with ADEME to structure a new economic sector around intermediate vehicles, supporting sustainable mobility innovation. For makers, mobility actors, and ADEME partners.
• International Cooperations (Vulca, VoW, ReFFAO) International cooperation with partner networks Vulca (Europe), VoW (Germany), and ReFFAO (West Africa), supporting mobility and cross-border projects via Erasmus+ accreditation. For RFFLabs members and European/African partner organizations.
• Risk Prevention Guide 32-page practical guide on risk prevention in FabLabs, co-developed with MAIF, covering safety responsibilities, workshop organization, regulatory signage, and emergency protocols. For FabLab operators and managers.
• Accessible Lab Guide (Lab Accessible! C'est possible) Guide titled 'Lab Accessible! C'est possible' providing guidance on making FabLabs accessible to all publics. For FabLab operators.
• Ecological Practices Guide Guide on ecological practices for FabLabs, available for download from the RFFLabs cloud. For FabLab operators and members.
• Scientific Council Livre Blanc (White Paper) White paper produced by the Scientific Council in 2018 providing foundational research and analysis on the FabLab ecosystem. For researchers, policymakers, and FabLab operators.

Quantifiable outcome

• 160 FabLabs in France connected through national network
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• MAIFcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHistoric partner (historique) contributing to the risk prevention guide for FabLabs, 32-page practical guide on safety in fabrication spaces
• ADEMEcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench environment and energy agency partnering on Extreme Defi project for intermediate vehicle economic sector development
• VulcacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean maker network for cooperation, annual seminars, and cross-border project mobility across Europe
• VoW (Open Workshops)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGerman open workshops network for international cooperation and maker exchange (Germany)
• ReFFAO (Réseau des FabLabs d'Afrique de l'Ouest)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWest African FabLab network for African maker cooperation and mobility projects
• Fab FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal FabLab network organization for international coordination and FabLab standards

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• IAAC Fab Lab Barcelona: Barcelona-based FabLab affiliated with the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia. Comparable as a prominent European FabLab producing educational resources and operating in the same maker/fabrication space.

Others

• Wikimedia France: French non-profit association chapter supporting the Wikimedia movement. Comparable as a French loi 1901 association with college-based membership, public-grant funding, and a community of contributors producing shared commons.

Regional players

• France Tiers-Lieux: National French network of tiers-lieux (third places) including many FabLabs. Comparable as a French national association federating hybrid maker/co-working/community spaces with similar public-funding model.
• Makespace Cambridge: UK community makerspace operating with a membership-based non-profit model similar to RFFLabs members. Comparable as a member-funded makerspace organization in a peer Western European geography.

Direct peers

• Verband offener Werkstätten (VoW): German association of open workshops and makerspaces partnering with RFFLabs for international cooperation. Directly comparable as a national federation of open maker spaces with a similar non-profit association structure.
• Vulca: European maker network partnering with RFFLabs for cross-border cooperation, annual seminars, and mobility projects. Comparable as a peer European federation of FabLabs and maker spaces at the continental level.
• Réseau des FabLabs d'Afrique de l'Ouest (ReFFAO): West African FabLab network partnering with RFFLabs for cross-continental mobility and cooperation projects. Comparable as a regional FabLab federation with similar governance and community-development mission.
• Fab Foundation: Global non-profit that originated the FabLab concept out of MIT's Center for Bits and Atoms and coordinates the worldwide FabLab network. Directly comparable to RFFLabs as the parent international federation of which RFFLabs is the French node.

Broad incumbents

• ICAM Network: Network of 14 engineering-school FabLabs across 8 countries and a listed partner/customer of RFFLabs. Comparable as a multi-site FabLab federation with international reach and education-focused mission.
• ATEN (Association Tiers-Lieux Éducation Numérique): French national network dedicated to digital education third places and FabLabs. Comparable as a broader French association network operating in overlapping territory with public funding and member-based governance.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/RFFLabs
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fablab-fr
• Instagraminstagram.com/rfflabs

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about RFFLabs