ElectricSmarts Network

The Evolution of Safety in Wiring Device Design

While Thomas Edison certainly recognized the inherent danger electrical current could pose, the safety of the wiring devices he and his competitors created, back in electricity’s early days, left a great deal to be desired. And, with their initial focus solely on lighting, these developers didn’t realize the speed with which electricity would transform all aspects of modern life. As a result, residential and commercial electrical systems of the early 20th Century were often cobbled-together rats’ nests of exposed wiring and improvised connections.