REDEVELOPMENT OF INDUSTRIAL MONUMENT

The Dru Factory is located on the river Oude IJssel, and is inextricably linked to it. DRU stands for Diepenbrock Reigers Ulft, with the Diepenbrock and Reigers families being the owners of the Ulft iron foundry, later the Dru Factory. Initially, Dutch iron ore was found in the ground here and later transported here, the IJssel provided the water power that was needed to supply the air to the furnaces by means of bellows.” However, the Dutch iron ore ran out and more modern blast furnaces provided heavy competition. DRU continued to grow, however, and was certainly a household name in pans and gas stoves after the Second World War, although stoves, bread bins, letter boxes, grave crosses and even telephone booths were also made. Partly due to the rise of central heating, the company got into trouble and several takeovers followed. In 1999, DRU moved to Duiven, where fireplaces and stoves are still made. The complex in Ulft was declared by Minister Plasterk as an exemplary project for future monument care in the Netherlands. A number of buildings without historical value have been demolished.

The first part of the Dru factory that was completed is the former porter's complex (from 1902), named after the porter's lodge at the front of the building that once ensured that all factory workers clocked in upon entering. The complex was designed (like many of the DRU buildings) by architects Gerrit and Arend Beltman, who are responsible for many industrial monuments. The porter's complex houses a theatre, pop hall, music school, library, gallery and a grand café, but also includes a conference centre, tourist office, a space for the ROC RijnIJssel and the office of the Heemkundige Vereniging Old Sillevold.

M+R was invited in August 2008, together with a number of other agencies, to present an interior vision and was quickly chosen because of its extensive experience in the field of catering, theatres, libraries and offices, and restorations of monumental buildings. In the interior design, M+R kept the original structure and industrial appearance of the complex intact as much as possible. The additions and innovations are strongly inspired by DRU's past and form a binding factor in the interior. For example, M+R was inspired by the DRU pans for the colour schemes of furniture, doors and walls, which were supplied in a wide colour palette - including light blue, mint green with a tulip (from the Holland Potery export line, now found on the doors of the music school). The bright colours of the DRU Confetti line can be found in various furniture in the Dru Factory, and those of the terracotta-coloured pans are reflected in the theatre.

(text: Rutger van Oldenbeek - PI)