In 1940, scientists had no fermentation tanks, so penicillin was grown in hundreds of ceramic vessels modeled on hospital bedpans; the improvised system helped turn Fleming’s discovery into a mass-produced medicine

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In 1940, scientists working to develop penicillin faced a major obstacle: they had discovered a potentially lifesaving medicine but lacked the industrial equipment needed to produce it in large quantities. Instead of modern fermentation tanks, the Oxford team relied on improvised containers, including hospital bedpans and specially designed ceramic vessels. Norman Heatley helped develop stackable vessels that allowed penicillin-producing mould to grow across shallow surfaces, while technical assistants carried out much of the demanding work by hand.