Philips is one of the largest and most influential electrical manufacturing companies in the world. It grew out of an electric light bulb factory attached to a leather goods factory in Endovin in the late 19th century. Currently, Philips produces a wide range of household appliances (e.g. electric stoves), indoor and outdoor lighting equipment, medical equipment, office appliances, industrial electrical equipment, a variety of photographic equipment, stereo recording equipment, video recording equipment, automotive radios and cassette recorders, and so on. In order to carry out research on all types of products, Philips has more than 200 institutes working on a variety of topics, such as integrated circuits, liquid crystals, heat treatment, plastics engineering, and so on. At the same time, Philips also has a special product shape in Endovan and packaging, advertising research and design of the central research institute, known as the "Industrial Design Center", or simply "shape design center.