Press Release

Call for Makers Now Open for Maker Faire Detroit 2017 Presented by GE Digital Detroit

Call for Entries Open through June 1, 2017

(Dearborn, MI – April 26, 2017) – Attention all makers, tinkerers, inventors, hackers and do-it-yourselfers: The call for entries is now open for Maker Faire Detroit 2017 at The Henry Ford. Now in its eighth year, this unique, two-day, family-friendly event welcomes GE Digital Detroit as presenting sponsor. Maker Faire Detroit will be held July 29-30, 2017, from 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m.

“The rich and shared history between GE’s founder and The Henry Ford makes our partnership a natural fit and we are proud to sponsor this year’s Maker Faire Detroit. The innovation began with the light bulb and continues today as GE evolves into the world’s premier digital industrial company,” said Mike DeBoer, vice president and executive leader of GE’s Digital Hub Detroit. “Makers in Detroit have so much to offer, and with nearly 800 of the world’s best Digital Technology professionals located at our Hub in Wayne County, we look forward to sharing the way we ‘make’ while we help bring this year’s Maker Faire to life!”

Maker Faire Detroit is looking for a wide variety of eclectic, diverse and out-of-the-box ideas that highlight the DIY and tinkerer spirit. Exhibits and displays can range from student projects, robotics, making for social good, interactive art project, rockets and RC toys, green tech, radios, vintage computers and game systems, electric vehicles, unusual tools or machines and shelters (tents, domes, etc.).  

To participate in Maker Faire Detroit, an entry form must be completed at http://www.makerfairedetroit.com/call-for-makers. Entries can be submitted by individuals or by groups, such as hobbyist clubs and schools. The Henry Ford particularly encourages exhibits that are interactive and that highlight the process of making things. The closing date for all entries is June 1, 2017. 

For more information, visit our website at www.makerfairedetroit.com. Maker Faire Detroit is independently produced by The Henry Ford in collaboration with Maker Media.

About The Henry Ford
The Henry Ford in Dearborn, Michigan is an internationally-recognized history destination that explores the American experience of innovation, resourcefulness and ingenuity that helped shape America. A national historic landmark with an unparalleled Archive of American Innovation, The Henry Ford is a force for sparking curiosity and inspiring tomorrow’s innovators. Nearly 1.8 million visitors annually experience its five attractions: Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, Greenfield Village, Ford Rouge Factory Tour, Benson Ford Research Center and The Henry Ford Giant Screen Experience. A continually expanding array of content available online provides anytime, anywhere access. The Henry Ford is also home to Henry Ford Academy, a public charter high school which educates over 500 students a year on the institution’s campus. In 2014, The Henry Ford premiered its first-ever national television series, The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation, showcasing present-day change-makers and The Henry Ford’s artifacts and unique visitor experiences. Hosted by news correspondent and humorist, Mo Rocca, this Emmy®-winning weekly half-hour show airs Saturday mornings on CBS. For more information please visit our website thehenryford.org.

About Maker Faire
Maker Faire is the Greatest Show (and Tell) on Earth—a family-friendly showcase of invention, creativity and resourcefulness, and a celebration of the Maker Movement.  It’s a place where people show what they are making, and share what they are learning.  

Makers range from tech enthusiasts to crafters to homesteaders to scientists to garage tinkerers.  They are of all ages and backgrounds. The aim of Maker Faire is to entertain, inform, connect and grow this community.

The original Maker Faire event was held in San Mateo, CA and in 2016 celebrated its eleventh annual show with some 1300 makers and 150,000 people in attendance.  World Maker Faire New York, the other flagship event, has grown in five years to 900+ makers and 95,000 attendees.  Forty larger scale Maker Faires occur in cities  around the world—Detroit, Atlanta, Berlin, Paris, Rome, Tokyo, and Shenzhen to name a few— and over 150 community-driven, independently organized Mini Maker Faires are now being produced in the United States and in 37 other countries around the world.