Paper shredder

Device used to cut paper into pieces Paper shredder with built-in wastebasket Inner view of a paper shredder with motor Detail of a cross-cut paper shredder A paper shredder is a mechanical device used to cut sheets of paper into strips or fine particles. Government organizations, businesses, and private individuals use shredders to destroy private, confidential, or otherwise sensitive documents. History Invention The paper shredder was invented by Abbot Augustus Low, whose patent was filed on February 2, 1909. His invention was never manufactured because he died prematurely soon after filing the patent. Adolf Ehinger's paper shredder, based on a hand-crank pasta maker, was the first to be manufactured, in 1935, in Germany. He created a machine to shred his anti-Nazi leaflets to avoid inquiries from the authorities. Ehinger later marketed and began selling his patented shredders to government agencies and financial institutions switching from hand-crank to electric motor shredders. Ehinger's company, EBA Maschinenfabrik, manufactured the first cross-cut paper shredders in 1959 and continues to do so today as EBA Krug & Priester GmbH & Co. in Balingen. A "wet shredder" was invented