How It's Made

The manufacturing processes behind prescription eyeglass lenses, finished granite products, mass-produced potato chips and microscopic computer processors are examined.

Bees and beekeepers produce and harvest honey, glass is drawn into extremely fine optical fibers, clay is molded and fired into bricks, and thousands of specialized components are assembled into pipe organs.

Personal watercraft are molded and mechanically assembled, grapes are fermented and aged into wine, particleboard is transformed into office furniture, and shaped steel blades are fitted to ice-skate boots.

Insulated materials are cut and sewn into winter jackets, drawings are developed into animated sequences, mushrooms are cultivated under controlled conditions, and gold alloys are formed and polished into rings.

Lettuce is grown without soil in a hydroponic system, logs are processed into construction lumber, discarded materials are sorted and prepared for reuse, and feathers and fibers are tied into artificial fishing flies.

Rough diamonds are evaluated and precisely cut, lumber is shaped and joined into wooden doors, gelatin shells are filled to create paintballs, and news pages are printed and assembled at high speed.

Yarn is tufted and finished into carpet, municipal water is filtered and disinfected, lasers are used to reshape the eye during corrective surgery, and selected woods are fashioned into acoustic guitars.

Fiberglass layers are molded into boat hulls, metal cabinets and rotating drums become clothes dryers, gum base is mixed and flavored to make bubble gum, and pyrotechnic compounds are assembled into fireworks.

Reinforced steel is fabricated into security safes, dental impressions are used to create fitted dentures, aircraft structures and systems are assembled, and maple sap is collected and concentrated into syrup.

Gelatin mixtures are molded into gummy candies, aluminum sheet is formed into beverage cans, fish are raised in controlled aquaculture facilities, and artists use molds and molten metal to cast bronze sculptures.

Aluminum is pressed and finished into cookware, prosthetic limbs are designed and fitted to individual patients, roasted peanuts are ground into peanut butter, and specialized components are assembled into high-intensity light bulbs.

Automobile bodies and mechanical components come together on an assembly line, steel wire is shaped into grocery carts, computer-assisted techniques create rapid prototypes and tooling, and commemorative designs are struck into collectible coins.

Steel components are ground and polished into precision ball bearings, conductive metal is drawn and insulated to produce electrical wire, wax models are used to cast complex metal objects, and a compilation examines automated manufacturing machinery.