industrial archaeology
Recently Published Documents

This article shows an approach to the three-dimensional modelling of a sugarcane mill and its associated steam engine, designed by the Robey and Co. engineering company in 1869. In order to obtain the 3D CAD model of said invention, CATIA V5 R20 software has been employed. Various sources of starting material, from the basis of this research and found in the process of searching for relevant information, provide information on the main elements, operating conditions, and mechanism of the machine. Thanks to the three-dimensional geometric modelling carried out, it has been possible to explain, in detail, both its operation and the final assembly of the invention through the assemblies of its different subsets, thereby obtaining a virtual recreation that shows its operation. Likewise, a study has been carried out, from a mechanical engineering viewpoint, of the gear train that transmitted the movement, in order to ascertain the compression force exerted on the sugar cane. This research, related to industrial archaeology, therefore, enables the reader to understand a machine that constituted a milestone in the sugarcane industry, while paying tribute to the English engineer, Robert Robey.

The disused factories’ areas represent a considerable part of the industrial archaeology of the city of Naples. In the last decades of the previous century, many of these factories were disused also because of the ban of asbestos production by the Italian law 257/1992. Of course, this was not the only problem that concurred to create a large amount of disused industrial areas. Often the simple delocalisation of manufactories in other countries contributed to this problem. The reuse of these areas requires polluted and contaminated land reclamation. The simple removal of the shallow soil layers is a widely used reclamation procedure. Furthermore, drilling operations either for piling or for tunnelling may incur in the same type of problem taking into account that this movement can be very expensive depending on the total volume of soil to be removed and to be taken to disposal. In this study a hybrid pile type is proposed as an environmentally friendly and a cheap solution. Hybrid piles are installed by a combination of pushing and augering technique. This installation method allows avoiding the removal and the subsequent disposal of shallow contaminated soil. The mechanical behaviour of three hybrid piles equipped with strain gauges along the shaft is investigated via three loading tests. In the framework of the design of a new mall in a disused industrial area, the opportunity to provide a fully sustainable foundation solution by equipping the piles with heat exchangers pipes is also investigated. Numerical simulations of the energy hybrid pile behaviour are presented outlining further benefits of the new hybrid installation technique and comparing two different configuration of the heat exchanger pipes. Doi: 10.28991/HEF-2021-02-03-010 Full Text: PDF

This article analyses the relationship between deindustrialisation and industrial heritage by considering recent studies on the topic. Although Deindustrialisation Studies and (Industrial) Heritage Studies focus on distinct phases of industrial change — schematically a "before" and an "after" of the history of industry — these fields increasingly converge on the role of the memory of the industrial past in the present. The essay examines these convergences in the Italian context, looking at the history of industrial archaeology and the difficulty of recognising a specifically "Italian deindustrialisation". It argues that history, especially environmental and labour history, can play an important role in this dialogue. In the last part, the article focuses on the industrial area of Porto Marghera (near Venice) and analyses the major cultural events that were organised for its centenary. It argues that this is an example both of "deindustrialisation without industrial heritage" and of "industrial heritage without the memory of deindustrialisation". This makes it difficult to develop a shared elaboration of the area's industrial past and of its future.

The city identity, city image and the recognition of its industrial past are at question in a quickly developing post-industrial urban context. The voices of industrial archaeology, of obsolete infrastructure, of unintended industrial monument in dialogue between fast developing new urban and past locus are all ingrained in the city’s memory. This urban discourse, if allowed to happen, will inform the development of contemporary urban fabric. It is vital that continuity of the built environment structures the contemporary post-industrial city identity This thesis engages with the Industrial artifact of the Wellington Destructor and suggests a conservation strategy for the obsolete and abundant industrial built artifact that will inspire new development and integrate within the masterplan. It will activate city’s past and future dialogue and it will inform the emerging urban development while preserving the continuity of urban heritage with industrial past. Industrial Archaeology becomes agent to changing urbanity.

The city identity, city image and the recognition of its industrial past are at question in a quickly developing post-industrial urban context. The voices of industrial archaeology, of obsolete infrastructure, of unintended industrial monument in dialogue between fast developing new urban and past locus are all ingrained in the city’s memory. This urban discourse, if allowed to happen, will inform the development of contemporary urban fabric. It is vital that continuity of the built environment structures the contemporary post-industrial city identity This thesis engages with the Industrial artifact of the Wellington Destructor and suggests a conservation strategy for the obsolete and abundant industrial built artifact that will inspire new development and integrate within the masterplan. It will activate city’s past and future dialogue and it will inform the emerging urban development while preserving the continuity of urban heritage with industrial past. Industrial Archaeology becomes agent to changing urbanity.

In 2017, a team from the Wessex Archaeology Sheffield office investigated a site, Hollis Croft (NGR 434990 387580), prior to the construction of a multi-million pound commercial and student housing development. Hollis Croft is one of many Sheffield’s sites where well-preserved industrial archaeology survives beneath the modern buildings. Historic building recording was followed by a watching brief, a scheme of archaeological evaluation trenching and then strip, map and sample excavations, which revealed substantial 18th-/19th-century remains of steel conversion furnaces (both cementation and crucible, constructed by Burgin and Wells and W. Fearnehough Ltd respectively). We also discovered metres of entwined brick-built flues (likely related to later steelmaking methods such as the Siemens-Martin open hearth process or Bessemer process), traces of two pubs (The Cock and The Orange Branch) and a wide range of finds – all indicative of the industrial processes and the everyday lives of the workers. Apart from the discovery of a crozzle layer covering the entire interior of the furnace (not just its base as previously thought), and the detailed impressions of the ferrous bars visible in the surface of the crozzle layer, the remains were very familiar for Sheffield and industrial archaeology. The post-excavation processes were carried out as usual following industry standards. All our findings have been brought together in a final report held in the digital archive and the physical archive (including the finds) was subsequently deposited with Museums Sheffield under SHEFM:2019.13 and Sheffield Archives. This publication is based on that final report, but edited and updated, so there are some minor differences between the documents. But, inspired by a great deal of public interest during the excavations (and Mili's love for comics), a comic book has also been created and is published here alongside what would otherwise be a more traditional offering.

Instead of narrowly protecting the heritage, the UNESCO World Heritage Convention promotes a holistic development approach to respond to new societal challenges [...]

Abstract Portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) spectroscopy is commonly used for testing toxic levels of heavy metals in modern industrial waste sites, and it has seen growing applicability in the context of archaeological survey and soils. In this study, we present the results of our pXRF analysis of surface soils at a historic silver refinery located near Puno, Peru, in the western Lake Titicaca Basin. The results of our analysis identified hazardous levels of antimony (Sb), arsenic (As), mercury (Hg), and lead (Pb) in excavation soils, necessitating the relocation of planned excavation units and the use of personal protective equipment. This study highlights the advantages of rapid, in situ pXRF analysis of surface soils in contaminated industrial archaeology sites to assess potential harm to human health.

Abstract Purpose The relics of the industry are widely used for educational and touristic purposes. There are many examples of brownfield sites turned into tourist attractions. Interest in post-industrial areas concerns not only an infrastructure and ruins but also the soil cover. Soils in such areas should be also considered as important element of this type of landscape due to the artefacts’ stored. This article aim is to present educational potential of post-industrial soils and artefacts to be found there on the example of the area of “Polchem”. Methods and materials This publication is based on the analysis of soils’ artefacts in the non-reclaimed area of former chemical plant. Photographic material and literature studies focus on technogenic soils and its functions. The history of “Polchem”, industrial tourism and industrial archaeology as well as verbal communication of people associated with the company were important components of this publication. Results and discussion Soils play many ecological functions, one of them is archiving human history. In this approach, archaeology is combined with soil science serving as a tool in archaeological research. Such cooperation within two scientific fields leads often to valuable scientific achievements. Relatively young post-industrial areas are generally out of interest of archaeology. However, they can form the basis of soil education activities targeted at a larger number of recipients. Conclusions Soils within cities are interesting due to recorded marks of human activity. Artefacts in soils can be used in various ways. One of them is an educational purpose. “Polchem” area is out of use now so it can be accessed by visitors (students and teachers). Artefact’s diversity allows for quick finding and recognition of industrial history of the former plant. In this way, it could be present an important soil function—protecting cultural heritage.

<p><strong>Objetivo:</strong> determinar bajo qué mecanismos se pueden emplear los artefactos (productos / servicios) para construir la historia incrustada dentro de un proyecto emprendedor (sus procesos), arrojando un novedoso, nuevo análisis en profundidad y multidimensional del emprendimiento.</p><p><strong>Diseño metodológico</strong>: enfoque desde la Arqueología Industrial (ai), que consta de dos etapas: el artefacto se deconstruye en su contexto material y de uso, y luego en aquel organizacional, en conjunto con técnicas históricas y cualitativas (triangulación e interpretación hermenéutica).</p><p><strong>Resultados</strong>: se realiza una propuesta conceptual desde la ai para analizar y comprender los procesos emprendedores.</p><p><strong>Limitaciones de la investigación</strong>: como cualquier propuesta conceptual se simplifica a propósito, lo que puede ser una desventaja.</p><p><strong>Hallazgos:</strong> se sugiere desde la ai analizar la historia del emprendimiento, ya que el artefacto puede brindar información específica y valiosa sobre los procesos bajo los cuales fue conceptualizado, diseñado, producido, vendido, adaptado u obsoleto, y el impacto que tuvo este en la empresa.</p>