Concrete touchdown: new technology influences industrial buildings in Norway, 1912–1920

Construction technology developed quickly during the first decades of the twentieth century. This influenced the construction of industrial buildings at the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization World Heritage site of Rjukan and Notodden in Norway. Behind the construction was Hydro, a company founded in 1905 to produce synthetic nitrogen fertiliser to increase the world’s food production. This industrial development demanded large structures such as hydropower stations and production facilities. Concrete was introduced for the first time during this period, and systems are characterised by heavy concrete bearing walls and mixed bearing walls where concrete and steel were combined. Such systems demanded significant material resources and resulted in the development of steel and concrete skeleton frames. The development of viable systems was achieved through research in materials science and structural engineering, in both the USA and Europe. This paper discusses how concrete influenced construction and building systems at this site. Similarities to industrial buildings and other building typologies are evident and connect the site to the international context of architecture and engineering history. Understanding the characteristics of individual buildings and presenting them in an order of a construction systems will support the work of architects and engineers in future conservation schemes.