Electrokinetica

Welcome to Electrokinetica

A new project bringing together a comprehensive collection
of electrical and electronic artefacts in a working museum
encompassing the first 150 years of electrical technology.

Electricity has been one of the major driving forces behind industrialised society for over a century, bringing light, heat, power and automation to every aspect of life. Medical care, transport, agriculture, entertainment; you name it and we'll show you how electrical and electronic technologies have helped make things easier, safer and better. To do justice to this vast engineering field and illustrate all the subtleties and secrets, at Electrokinetica we need to think big! Our collection is building up and we aim to have our first public display in place during 2008. We are investigating the possibility of setting up our pilot exhibition at one of a number of existing engineering heritage sites.

In the meantime, have a look around our website, where you can get a sneak preview of some of the forthcoming attractions, and find out about the engineering that makes them tick. Soon you will be able to see, touch and operate machines and appliances of all shapes and sizes. Discover fantastic technologies. Recreate historic experiments with your own hands. Experience the power and magic of electrical energy as seen by the Victorian pioneers, and marvel at the complex innards of yesterday's machines still working like new.

From Alternator to Zener, we will aim to give a few moments of fame to every kind of electrical object. Our greatest interest is in electromechanical machines, because they were once the mainstay of so many electrical applications, and because they can be so fascinating and perplexing to watch. Electromechanical control systems were some of the most intricate and advanced machines that you can actually see working. We will also be giving our first attention to the older artefacts and those which are becoming 'endangered species' regardless of age.

Guide to the website

We have structured our site as a virtual museum, and invite you to visit the various areas and explore our collection. We have placed most items in approximately the locations you would expect to find them in real life, which will give each department a distinctive character. As we get our real artefacts ready for exhibition you will be able to follow their progress here in the virtual museum. If there is something specific you want to see, try the search tab above. If you're just browsing, try the site map for suggestions.

Work in Progress

There are already more than twenty rooms with exhibits on show and these are worth seeking out. There are many more items in our collection which we have not yet had the opportunity to research and document; we hope to bring you news of these as soon as possible. Remember to click the links under the page heading to see all the exhibits in any room. We will be filling the other rooms with new displays as soon as we can. The forum is now up and running; if you enjoy talking about electrical matters why not sign up as a member?