Established in 1901 by the Thyssen ironworks empire, the Meiderich plant was an industrial powerhouse designed to manufacture raw pig iron for European structural manufacturing. Operating continuously across five blast furnace units until economic shifts caused its shutdown in 1985, the plant produced millions of metric tons of pig iron throughout the 20th century.
Adaptive Reuse & Structural Steel Conservation
Rather than demolishing the massive steel scaffoldings, blast furnace shells, and gasometer tanks, urban planners led by Latz + Partner transformed the 180-hectare industrial terrain into a world-celebrated public park. Structural steel elements were coated with protective rust-inhibitors, allowing visitors and researchers to study early 20th-century heavy engineering firsthand.