The 16 Tech Community Corporation unveiled three new brands today for the 16 Tech Innovation District’s innovation hub, makerspace and artisan marketplace. The new brands feature identifying marks that reflect the energy and distinguishing characteristics of the activity centers located in the innovation hub and complement the 16 Tech Innovation District brand.
The 100,000+ square-foot innovation hub, which sits in the heart of the 50-acre innovation district, will be known as HqO, a name that both honors the building’s history as the former Indianapolis Water Company and identifies it as the effective headquarters for 16 Tech. HqO is currently under construction and will be home to a makerspace, an artisan marketplace, and flexible workspace for companies, creators and innovators.
“HqO will be the heartbeat of the district,” said Bob Coy, president and CEO of the 16 Tech Community Corporation. “The name reinforces the physical location of 16 Tech at the confluence of the White River and Fall Creek and supports the hub’s purpose as the district’s central gathering place. It’s also a play on the chemical formula for water (H2O), which is the most essential resource for life. Similarly, innovation – which 16 Tech exists to harness and promote – is essential for our region’s economic future and prosperity.”
The makerspace will take up 15,000 square feet of space within HqO and is branded Machyne. It will be a membership-based community where people with a passion for learning and creating gather to take classes and work on projects while sharing ideas, equipment and knowledge.
“As a community makerspace, Machyne will be a workshop of the future with cutting-edge tools and equipment for people of all backgrounds to express their creativity and bring their ideas to life,” said Alex Bandar, Machyne operator and pioneer in the national maker community. “Like a machine, which has different parts that move together to perform a useful task, Machyne will attract diverse people with varying skills, yet are aligned with the mission of creating something tangible.”
The artisan marketplace, branded the AMP, will be 40,000 square feet of space featuring fresh food and produce from local 
retailers and artisans, seven restaurant stalls, a full-service restaurant, a culinary incubator, community prep kitchen and events for 16 Tech Innovation tenants and the Indianapolis community. The new brand is both an acronym for “artisan marketplace” and shorthand for ampere, a basic unit of electrical current, which symbolizes the highly energetic atmosphere and eclectic combination of food, retail and events.
Craig Baker, local chef and entrepreneur who will operate the AMP, says the name conveys the creative energy
of the project. “It will be a dynamic experience and a new destination for Indianapolis residents,” said Baker.
HqO will also house 50,000+ square feet of flexible workspace managed by 1776, a global innovator network with eight campuses throughout the country serving more than 5,000 members and 2,500 companies. The flexible office space in HqO includes private offices and desks, corporate suites, meeting rooms and convening spaces.
16 Tech has partnered with a variety of local firms to design and construct HqO. Indianapolis-based DkGR is architect of record for HqO, while Meticulous served as the consulting architect for Machyne and Shrewsberry provided civil engineering and landscaping design. Matinee led the branding work, and Rowland Design the environmental graphics. CORE Planning Strategies is providing owner’s rep services, and Browning-Davis is the general contractor for the project. In addition to its local partners, 16 Tech consulted with ISA, an architectural firm based in Philadelphia, for the office space and exteriors of HqO.
Learn more about HqO, Machyne, the AMP and 1776 at https://www.16tech.com/hqo/.
In addition to announcing the new branding, 16 Tech is hosting a ribbon-cutting to celebrate the construction completion of Innovation Building 1 and initial road work in the district. The event will be held on Tuesday, Aug. 4, at 10 a.m., and the public is invited to participate virtually. Registration is open on Eventbrite at https://bit.ly/3fea82Y.
