The Secret Life of Machines, Season 1, Episode 2, 1998, written and narrated by Tim Hunkin.
The Sewing Machine, Part 1
The Sewing Machine, Part 2
The Sewing Machine, Part 3
You can read more about the Secret Life of Machines in the Wikipedia.
The Secret Life of Machines, Season 1, Episode 1, 1998, written and narrated by Tim Hunkin.
The Vacuum Cleaner, Part 1
Not currently available on YouTube.
The Vacuum Cleaner, Part 2
Not currently available on YouTube.
The Vacuum Cleaner, Part 3
Not currently available on YouTube.
You can read more about the Secret Life of Machines in the Wikipedia.
Have you ever wondered where the ubiquitous machines around you came from or how they actually work? The Secret Life of Machines, a series written for BBC Channel 4 by cartoonist Tim Hunkin, may just answer your questions. The original 6 episodes, aired in 1988, explain the development and inner workings of machines like the vacuum cleaner, washing machine, and, of course, the television. Season 2, aired in 1991, added 6 more episodes. The final season, aired in 1993, brought the total number of episodes to 18.
In each episode of the Secret Life of Machines, Hunkin, assisted by fellow machine enthusiast Rex Garrod, outlines the history and development of some common machine, finally arriving at an explanation of how the modern version works. The simple formula works well and rewards the natural curiosity of both children and adults. Hunkin does not dwell on minor technical details but provides enough information to understand the basics. In fact, you will immediately see how certain fundamental engineering principles appear again and again in machines all around you. The series may even inspire you to try your hand at tinkering. Just take care not to electrocute yourself in the process and always watch those fingers.
You can view all of the Secret Life of Machines episodes here via links to YouTube.
Series 1 (1988)
Series 2 (1991)
Series 3 (1993)
The Secret Life of Machines never made it to DVD in North America but you can read more about the series and author on the official website. You can download the original series videos in .avi format, with the author’s permission, from Science Zero. Science Zero limits monthly download bandwidth so try early in a given month for the best chance at getting the videos.
You can read more about the Secret Life of Machines in the Wikipedia.
Unlike most engineering firms, HARRISON offers a wide range of interrelated engineering services. While these services can certainly stand along, most projects draw upon expertise in multiple areas. Conveying this concept to the customer, of many talents and many disciplines working together, poses something of a challenge. How can we concisely explain exactly what we do?
While building this website we explored different ways of organizing our services. Six distinct areas eventually emerged: Machine Design, Job Shop Manufacturing, Research and Development, Manufacturing Consulting, Field Services, and Construction. While HARRISON does all these things, simply listing them creates the false impression that each service stands along. In reality that rarely happens. A typical customer does not just want a machine designed or part machined, often the customer wants an element that smoothly integrates with a system. The system may be completely new or decades old, but everything has to work together without a hitch. That requires experience and expertise in many areas, machining some parts to a drawing.
Sometimes a picture can do what words cannot. We developed the HARRISON services diagram to show just how our services stand together or stand apart as required to meet the unique needs of each customer. In the center of the diagram all 6 services blend together. At the perimeter of the nucleus the services meet in numerous combinations. Further out in the orbits each service stands alone. This reflects the interdisciplinary approach of HARRISON and also suggests the scope of our projects, from the smallest job shop manufacturing task to the construction of a complete manufacturing facility.
Welcome to the Harrison Industrial Services Inc. blog! At HARRISON we love designing and building machines and machine parts for practically any application. We also enjoy learning about and developing new technologies. Our blog will focus on current and ongoing HARRISON projects, especially those of an interesting and unusual nature. We will talk about the machines we design and build, custom parts, research projects, and new technologies. We will also discuss more general topics relating to engineering and manufacturing.
