Built to Last
Objects that were over-engineered on purpose, and what happened to the companies that made them.
Objects that were over-engineered on purpose, and what happened to the companies that made them.
The bridge that should not have fallen
Four independent safety systems, all of which worked exactly as specified. A film about what "as specified" is worth.
How It Broke · Published last week · 1.2M views
The toaster that outlived its company
A 1948 appliance still in daily use, and the accounting decision that made building it that way impossible.
Built to Last · Published 2 weeks ago · 840K views
Why your charger is that shape
Eleven years of standards committee minutes, condensed. The better connector lost for reasons that had nothing to do with the connector.
The Standard · Published 3 weeks ago · 2.1M views
Inside a working foundry
Three days in a foundry that has been casting the same component since 1961, filmed with no narration for the first eleven minutes.
Field Trip · Published last month · 1.6M views
The tunnel nobody signed off
A project where every individual decision was defensible and the sum of them was not.
How It Broke · Published last month · 980K views
The world’s most boring screw
A fastener designed in 1936, still specified today, and the patent fight that nearly killed it.
Built to Last · Published 6 weeks ago · 1.4M views
What happened to the second format
It was better, it was cheaper, and it lost in eighteen months. A film about distribution.
The Standard · Published 2 months ago · 760K views
The factory that refused to automate
Filmed over a week on a line that is still run by people, and the numbers that say it should not be.
Field Trip · Published 2 months ago · 1.1M views
Six inches of water
A flood defence that failed by a margin nobody had thought worth modelling.
How It Broke · Published 3 months ago · 1.9M views
The quietest room I have ever filmed in
An anechoic chamber, a very confused sound recordist, and what silence actually does to you.
Field Trip · Published 3 months ago · 2.4M views
The cable under the ocean
The channel’s longest film, and the one that took five months. Laying, breaking and repairing the thing everything else depends on.
Built to Last · Published 4 months ago · 3.1M views
The committee that chose wrong
Nine people, one vote, and a decision that is still costing money forty years later.
The Standard · Published 5 months ago · 690K views
Videos
Latest videos
Everything published, newest first.
The bridge that should not have fallen
Four independent safety systems, all of which worked exactly as specified. A film about what "as specified" is worth.
How It Broke · Published last week · 1.2M views
The toaster that outlived its company
A 1948 appliance still in daily use, and the accounting decision that made building it that way impossible.
Built to Last · Published 2 weeks ago · 840K views
Why your charger is that shape
Eleven years of standards committee minutes, condensed. The better connector lost for reasons that had nothing to do with the connector.
The Standard · Published 3 weeks ago · 2.1M views
Inside a working foundry
Three days in a foundry that has been casting the same component since 1961, filmed with no narration for the first eleven minutes.
Field Trip · Published last month · 1.6M views
The tunnel nobody signed off
A project where every individual decision was defensible and the sum of them was not.
How It Broke · Published last month · 980K views
The world’s most boring screw
A fastener designed in 1936, still specified today, and the patent fight that nearly killed it.
Built to Last · Published 6 weeks ago · 1.4M views
What happened to the second format
It was better, it was cheaper, and it lost in eighteen months. A film about distribution.
The Standard · Published 2 months ago · 760K views
The factory that refused to automate
Filmed over a week on a line that is still run by people, and the numbers that say it should not be.
Field Trip · Published 2 months ago · 1.1M views
Six inches of water
A flood defence that failed by a margin nobody had thought worth modelling.
How It Broke · Published 3 months ago · 1.9M views
The quietest room I have ever filmed in
An anechoic chamber, a very confused sound recordist, and what silence actually does to you.
Field Trip · Published 3 months ago · 2.4M views
The cable under the ocean
The channel’s longest film, and the one that took five months. Laying, breaking and repairing the thing everything else depends on.
Built to Last · Published 4 months ago · 3.1M views
The committee that chose wrong
Nine people, one vote, and a decision that is still costing money forty years later.
The Standard · Published 5 months ago · 690K views