We’re excited to share that the Groover Labs courtyard canopy is finally complete.
A shaded, functional courtyard was always part of the Groover Labs vision–an outdoor workspace with tables and chairs for the days when Kansas weather cooperates.
The courtyard canopy design was Curt’s vision from the start–and like most of his ideas, it wasn’t simple. He had a specific bend radius in mind for the steel beams, one that challenged standard conventions. Curt had a talent for using materials in unconventional ways, which made projects harder to complete, but in the end, the results were almost always remarkable.
In 2021, Curt, Tracy, and Jeremiah began laying the groundwork for the courtyard. Curt and Jeremiah built a scale model to study how the sun’s path would affect heat and light in the hotseat area. We got the concrete patio poured. Curt and Jeremiah cut and anchored the steel uprights. Our electrician installed outlets.
As membership in the Maker Labs grew, Curt and Jeremiah turned their attention to supporting Groover Labs’ startups. They began designing hardware for Greenfield Robotics and Peeq Industries. They built and learned how to operate two full hardware product development lines, including a full PCB assembly line.
Work on the courtyard was placed on hold while Curt and Jeremiah focused on the mission.
Then, in 2024, Curt died after a short battle with cancer. We knew we had to finish what he had started.
And, true to form, the work wasn’t easy.
Jeremiah sourced the five 23-foot bent steel beams, which he, Paul, and Tracy installed on a Saturday. Denise, a longtime friend of Tracy’s, stitched together a durable, breathable, and flexible canopy in four parts. Tracy’s brother John flew into town to help with the installation.
The process of affixing the four-part canopy to the bent steel beams is more complicated than we can describe here, but rest assured, it was a Herculean effort involving a scissor lift, a forklift, two sewing machines, a bundle of ratchet straps, strong Kansas winds, a canvas L.L. Bean bag, batches of rivet nuts and self-tapping screws, a blowtorch, lots of clamps, and a fair amount of determination, speculation, and problem-solving.
Over the course of four days, the team installed, uninstalled, and reinstalled sections of the canopy while troubleshooting a host of issues–issues anyone accustomed to DIY projects is all too familiar with. Members of the Groover Labs community gathered in the hotseat area throughout the project, discussing the challenges and debating different approaches.
At one point, we spotted a sewing machine hoisted into the air about 12 feet on a scissor lift. And someone was using it.
On Tuesday night, after the sun set but before the rain started, they finished. Those who work under the canopy will appreciate its shade, but those who worked on it–whether through a brainstorming session looking through the hotseat windows or passing the scale model in the Maker Labs all those years ago–will remember it as a lasting tribute to the ingenuity, steadfastness, and creative spirit Curt inspires in all of us.
We hope you’ll enjoy it this Spring.
