Jackie Southworth of SOVRIN Training, takes a look at a piece of equipment over 3000 years old, which is still available today and found in most first aid kits....the safety pin.
In one form or another the safety pin has been around for over 3000 years and during that time the basic design has changed very little. Although their exact origin is uncertain it is known they were initially developed from the straight pin. Being primarily used for holding together clothing and robes, in ancient times safety pins were known as "fibulae"-which in Latin means brooch. The earliest fibulae were very plain utility items, similar in appearance to the fastening on the back of modern day brooches. By the time of the Roman Empire, fibulae were available in gold and silver, having become decorative pieces and wealthier people began wearing them purely for display in the same way modern day brooches and jewellery are worn.
The safety pin as we know it today, as found in first aid kits, was reinvented in 1849, by an American engineer called Walter Hunt. By this time Hunt had already invented many things including an early repeating rifle, a knife sharpener a stove and artificial stone. As early as 1834 he had invented the first sewing machine, but decided not to patent his design, as he feared its development would result in the loss of jobs for hand sewers.
Being a successful inventor but a poor business man, Hunt never made his fortune from the numerous inventions and actually invented the safety pin sat at his desk one day, twisting a piece of wire whilst trying to work out how he could repay a $15 debt. The rest as they say is history, he took out a patent on his safety pin design and then sold all rights to it for a mere $400 and paid his debt.
Today production of the safety pin is fully automated with one factory making over 3 million a day or around 1 billion each year and even though safety pins have been replaced in many cases by modern fastening such as Velcro, sticky tapes and press studs, their usefulness will no doubt ensure they are available for foreseeable future.
