A conversation with former NS photographer Johan Dekkers and municipal project manager Joep Frenken
This image from the late 1980s is one of about 30,000 photographs Johan Dekkers took during his time as the in-house photographer for the Dutch Railways. It gives a glimpse into the then diesel engine shed of the Tilburg NS Main Workshop; the place where the gigantic engines from all over the country were repaired and preventively maintained. If you look closely, you will see that the MindLabs building shines at this exact location today. Among other things, the steel structure still stands. "The trusses are incredibly important for the contours of this historic building," project manager Joep Frenken of the municipality of Tilburg now states. "Consequently, no expense was spared to preserve them and incorporate them into the new design."
If you look closely, you can see that at this precise location today the MindLabs building shines. Among other things, the steel structure is still standing. "The trusses are incredibly important for the contours of this historic building," project manager Joep Frenken of the municipality of Tilburg now states. "Consequently, no expense was spared to preserve them and incorporate them into the new design."
It was 1868 when the first railroad rolling stock of the State Railways (the predecessor of the NS) was restored in the current Tilburg Spoorzone. Geographically a tactical choice because of its location between the German border and the port of Rotterdam. And the site - which, due to further construction on the north side of Tilburg, has moved further and further into the heart of the city - is still situated on the outskirts of the city at that time. In the years that follow, many new repair halls, sheds and work buildings are erected. From turning shop to spray shed: everything is eventually present on the site that from 1955 is officially called the "NS Hoofdwerkplaats. At the time of the photo, the staff focuses specifically on all maintenance of locomotives and special carriages such as sleeping cars, measuring cars and even the royal train.
House photographer and mechanic at the Main Workshop
From 1977 until the closure of the NS Main Workshop in 2011, Johan Dekkers can be found on the NS grounds. At first only as a mechanic, but when the house photographer on duty dropped out, he applied for a job behind the camera. And he gets it. Dekkers gets to go everywhere with a mobile photo studio. As long as he can be deployed in "his" diesel engine shed in case of an emergency. The historic photo he took shows part of the diesel engine department of the NS main workshop; the place where he spent so many hours as a mechanic. The building had been equipped for this particular engine variant since the introduction of diesel locomotives in 1956. The exact spot of the then shed can still be recognized today by the characteristic rafters.
Dekkers captured the space from the station side. From the track on which the trains were driven in, he remembers. "In the foreground you can see several diesel engines that needed maintenance. Huge giants, as one is easily about 2.5 meters by 4." Further back, some of the work stations are visible, where the engines were tinkered with. "Six of them in all. And two more disassembly stations," he explains. "For disassembly, the engines were lifted up on a crane and taken completely apart. Everything was then put into baskets part by part, cleaned and reassembled from there (see Photo 2)." Hanging from one of those cranes now, years later, is a large television screen. Thus, here, too, character has been combined with ultramodernity.
The circumstances behind the photo
By the way, it is because of an unusual confluence of circumstances that the overview photo of the engine shed can be admired today in the MindLabs building. The NS Main Workshop, for example, was not at all keen on photographers. That this image came about at all probably had to do with Dekkers' mechanic position. "Unlike outside photographers, I was allowed to go everywhere and could do my thing. I knew the security requirements and knew my way around. And I could walk in at any time. During an open house, for example, I had never captured such a calm, detailed image as I do now."
Then there was the negative of the photograph, which Dekkers reportedly rescued from the trash. "When I was no longer employed as a photographer due to budget cuts, I had to turn everything in and my office was cleared out. Because I was afraid everything would end up in the trash, I brought home eleven folders full of negatives. The photo of the diesel engine shed included. Chances are they wouldn't have been there otherwise." The final obstacle? The initial plans for demolition and large-scale new construction on the old NS site, when the municipality bought the land from the railroad company. "But better half way than whole way," Frenken said. "And so in the Spoorzone now stands a beautiful ensemble of great cultural-historical value. With the MindLabs building at its heart. As if it has always been there."
Sale to the municipality
So it would have been close or not only the maintenance work and the photo, but also the historical elements of the former NS site would have belonged only to the past. This included the characteristic trusses highlighted in the photo. After all, the municipality's original plans included mainly new residential blocks, office buildings and parking lots. Only the current LocHal, Koepelhal/Wagenmakerij and the Polygoonhal would be spared. But then the recession hit, and the municipality also had to take a financial pass. Frenken: "That ultimately proved to be the salvation of the Spoorzone. Because while our grand plans were on hold, we really got to know the area. It gave us time to reconsider and to realize how special that place actually was. The conclusion? We had to go back to the drawing board to reshape our plan. One with much more regard for the past."
Even with the municipality's new plans, the area around the central station went through a major overhaul. What did remain: the most important historical features and the great activity that prevailed there. Frenken: "The final design was made with respect for old and new. With the vibrant heart - the MindLabs building - as the cathedral of it all. It is a sturdy building that yet in all its modesty remains part of the whole. And a place that does what it should do: provide openness and space, inspire and encourage encounters."
Long-term process
The road from maintenance site to Spoorzone was a process of the long haul, the project manager points out. "Such a unique environment simply requires a lot of extra effort along the way. The Chromium-6 paint on the MindLabs trusses is a good example. We had to do something with that. Because we think Tilburg needs that bit of character preservation. In the 60s and 70s we cleaned up most of the textile industry a bit too easily, even though it made this city great. Gone is gone. So now we've shown guts and tenacity. And see here: it pays off!"
Dekkers is also pleased with the new use of the Spoorzone. In particular that of the diesel engine shed. "As a photographer, I did learn that a lot is transient. So to be able to walk around it today and be reminded of its former use, that's great. My old photo is coming home again."