How It's Made
Have you ever wondered how the products you use every day are made? How It's Made leads you through the process of how everyday products, such as apple juice, skateboards, engines, contact lenses, and many more objects are manufactured.
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Episodes
1. Patterned Glass Panels, Road Cases, Stop-Frame Animation
Molten glass is formed with textured patterns to create decorative and privacy panels. Durable plywood shells are reinforced with metal edging, corners and locking hardware to make protective road cases, while models and sets are moved in tiny increments and photographed one frame at a time to produce stop-frame animation.
2. Industrial Wire Ropes, Living Walls, Large Format Cameras, Gemstones
Individual steel wires are twisted into strands and wound around a central core to produce heavy-duty industrial wire ropes. Plants, growing media and irrigation systems are combined into vertical living walls; precision bodies, bellows and film holders are assembled into large-format cameras; and rough gemstones are cut and polished to reveal their colour and pattern.
3. Chocolate Coins, Floor Heating Systems, Pedal Cars, Latex Swords
Tempered chocolate is moulded into coins and wrapped in embossed metallic foil. Electrical heating elements are arranged beneath flooring to provide even radiant heat, child-sized pedal cars are assembled from shaped body and drive components, and flexible theatrical swords are cast in moulds and finished with layers of coloured latex.
4. Farmed Caviar, Intake Manifolds, Motorcycle Jackets, Shovels & Spades
Farm-raised sturgeon provide roe that is carefully separated, graded and salted to produce caviar. Intake manifolds are cast and machined to distribute air through an engine, protective motorcycle jackets are cut and sewn from leather with reinforced panels, and steel blades are shaped, hardened and fitted to handles to make shovels and spades.
5. Wax Figures, Awnings, Sandwich Crackers, Pewter Tankards
Detailed sculptures and moulds are used to create lifelike wax figures, which are completed with painted features and individually applied hair. Weather-resistant fabric is cut and mounted on folding frames to make awnings, crisp crackers are baked and paired around a measured layer of filling, and molten pewter is formed and polished into traditional tankards.
6. Pipe Cleaners, Blue Stilton Cheese, Smart Electric Meters, Telescopes
Soft fibres are trapped between twisting wires to produce flexible pipe cleaners. Cultured milk is coagulated, drained and pierced so the characteristic blue mould can develop in Stilton cheese; electronic measuring components are calibrated inside smart electric meters; and precisely shaped lenses or mirrors are aligned within telescope bodies.
7. Fish Replicas, Siren Systems, Pre-Packaged Sandwiches, Candlesticks
Moulds taken from real specimens are used to cast lightweight fish replicas, which are carefully painted to reproduce natural markings. Electronic and acoustic components are assembled into powerful warning sirens, ingredients are portioned onto bread and sealed in protective packaging, and metal is cast or shaped before being polished into decorative candlesticks.
8. Tapioca Pudding, Snow Ploughs, Paddle Boats, Fibre Cement Siding
Tapioca pearls are cooked with dairy ingredients and sweeteners to produce a smooth packaged pudding. Heavy steel plates are cut, curved and welded into snow ploughs; moulded hulls are fitted with pedal-driven propulsion systems to make paddle boats; and cement reinforced with cellulose fibres is formed, cured and finished as exterior siding.
9. Rally Cars, Pork Pies, Floating Fountains, Artificial Stone Ornaments
Production vehicles are stripped, reinforced and equipped with specialised engines, suspension and safety systems to create rally cars. Pastry shells are filled and baked into traditional pork pies, pumps and nozzles are mounted on floating platforms to create fountains, and moulded mineral mixtures are cured and finished as artificial stone ornaments.
10. Cufflinks, Blueberry Turnovers, Dashboards, Earthenware Pottery
Small metal components are cast or cut, joined and polished to create decorative cufflinks. Pastry is folded around blueberry filling and baked into turnovers, moulded structures are fitted with instruments and electronics to form vehicle dashboards, and shaped clay is dried, glazed and fired into earthenware pottery.
11. Pharmaceutical Blister Packs, Deli Slicers, Oysters, Weathervanes
Plastic film is heated and formed into individual cavities, filled with medication and sealed with foil to produce pharmaceutical blister packs. Stainless-steel blades, motors and adjustable carriages are assembled into deli slicers; oysters are cultivated, harvested and prepared for sale; and shaped metal ornaments are balanced on rotating mounts to make weathervanes.
12. Top & Bowler Hats, Solar Water Heaters, Sticky Buns, Electrostatic Speakers
Felt hat bodies are steamed, stretched over wooden forms and trimmed into top hats and bowlers. Absorbing collectors, pipes and insulated tanks are assembled into solar water-heating systems; enriched dough is rolled with a sweet filling, sliced and baked into sticky buns; and a thin charged diaphragm is suspended between perforated panels to create electrostatic speakers.
13. Turntables, Steam Engines, Playground Equipment, Teflon Pans
Platters, motors, tonearms and electronic controls are assembled and calibrated to produce turntables. Boilers and precision-machined moving components are combined into working steam engines, shaped metal and plastic parts are coated and assembled into playground equipment, and formed cookware receives layers of non-stick coating before curing and final assembly.
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