The reactivation of a historic shaft-building

摘要

In the past, building care of monuments, in the Ruhr-district, was in the first place limited to representative buildings and a few residential houses. In the last few years current opinion has changed on this point. The people also recognise that the industrial evolution represents an essential part of their history, which is worth documenting. The inclusion of the coal mine Zollverein in UNESCO's world heritage list is an important milestone in this development. The repair of industrial memorialsrequires several treatments. Special aspects, which do not encounter the monument conservator duringthe classical repair tasks, are to be considered. Constructed for the economical use, the significance of industrial buildings, exceeding the utility value, is not always recognisable from the beginning. During their utilisation time the handling of such buildings is correspondingly committed from that. Because of the specialised construction of such buildings, the usability is often very strongly restricted. The acceptance of industrial buildings is rising, but it is still difficult to find a new occupant. The appearance of the buildings after their closure discourages many possible users. Sometimes the beauty and the historical importance of an industrial building are not recognised until it is completely restored. As an example, some typical difficulties are shown, and solutions are pointed out, for the tower upon the former shaft of Prosper 2 in Bottrop. In addition to the questions of contamination and overload, the balance between the demand of the user and the technical realities has to be found. The preservation of the building structure and simultaneous adaptation of the building to the needs of the occupant is the overriding intention of the works.