Payson innovation center receives equipment delivery; officials flag ventilation, training and a delayed soft opening

City committee members said the Payson innovation center has received a large shipment of equipment, including 3-D printers and a laser engraver, but that staff must resolve ventilation and safety checks before the facility opens to users.

"We've got a massive delivery of stuff that needs to be set up," one official said, noting Emtek’s contribution and naming Jace Wilson of Emtek as the projected operations lead for the center. Officials raised ventilation as a particular concern after recounting an unrelated building fire caused by a tenant’s laser cutter elsewhere.

Council and chamber representatives said the center will require user training before allowing members to operate tools. "So everybody that participates in the innovation center will be able to use it, but they'll have to be trained on it prior to using it," an official said. A soft opening previously discussed will not occur next week; staff instead plan smaller introductions tied to two community events: a workshop on the 23rd and a chamber luncheon on the 28th (dates given in the meeting as "the 20 third" and "the 20 eighth").

Emtek representatives and city staff described the partnership as critical to operations and said they are visiting longer-running innovation centers in the state to develop best practices for operations, safety and community use.