Industrial Heritage Museum, Bologna

The Industrial Heritage Museum (Museo del Patrimonio Industriale) introduces its guests to the entire history of Bologna's industrial development that starts in the 14th century. The tour through the whole place helps to learn about the economic and production history of the city. The visit will be twice as interesting because of the unusual location of the museum. The exhibition spaces occupy a restored brick kiln that dates back to 1877.

History of the museum

An exhibition "Macchine scuola industria" was held in Bologna in 1982 where the restored historical collections of the Aldini Valeriani Institute were presented. After that, the museum-laboratory has continued to function. Small plastic models of old factories were created inside this building. In 1986, in the Triennale di Milano, a model of the Bologna silk factory at the scale of 1:2 was displayed to the public. In the late 20th century, the Galotti factory was rebuilt, and then in 1994 an exhibition "Automatic Devices Manufacturing" was set up. In 1997 the place began housing a museum. By the year 2000, the preparation of all the exhibition spaces was completed, and the museum organized the first permanent exhibition called "Bologna's Production."

Museum's building and exhibition

The museum is housed in a very unusual building. The factory "Battiferro," opened in 1887, was once the largest brick producer in the city. It was closed in 1966, and in the late 20th century the museum moved its collections to the 16 rooms of the massive Hoffmann kiln. This is an example of one of the largest restorations of an industrial facility in Italy. In the next building, there are offices, archives, and rooms for temporary exhibitions. The permanent exhibition itself is located on kiln’s three floors and covers an area of about 3500 square meters.

The museum collections include more than 1000 different exhibits. All of them are divided into three parts:

• Historical. It consists of measuring instruments, models of machines, prototypes, visual materials.
• Equipment and machinery. This part consists of several collections: cars, automatic equipment for industrial enterprises, parts, and elements of factory equipment and electromedical devices.
• Models. Reconstructions of various industrial buildings, equipment, and workplaces. They are made of plastic and other materials; many devices are fully functioning.

Entire museum exhibition space is divided into six separate routes, located in different rooms:

• The Hoffman kiln. On the ground floor, in the kiln itself, the process of brick-making is demonstrated. Various models, interactive stations, videos, as well as decorative elements replicate the production processes and different types of products.
• The Aldini Valeriani Institute. This part is situated in the kiln as well. It offers models, machines, scientific and technical tools from collections that belong to the institute which was the oldest technical educational facility of the city. These pieces make it possible to trace the main technological stages of the industrial revolution in the 19th–20th century.
• Bologna – the Capital of Packaging. On the ground floor, there is a collection of machinery from 1940–1960 that was used to pack products. Six of them can still function. They are accompanied by multimedia materials that illustrate their characteristics, development and production processes.
• Bologna – the City of Water and Silk. The section is dedicated to the Bologna silk factory – one of the largest in the state – which operated in the 14th–18th centuries. The process of silk creation is shown through various exhibits, models and audiovisual materials.
• The City of Mechanical Culture. Items produced by the city's enterprises in the 20th century can be found here. Among them, there are machines, parts of motorcycles and cars, engines, gears, suspension and frame systems, medical equipment, automatic control systems and so much more.
• From perfection to the future. This space demonstrates the dynamics and technological aspect of modern Bologna industry. Exhibits and multimedia materials help visitors to learn about the latest applications of technological solutions.

The museum owns rich document and photo archives, as well as a library. Also, it provides educational services, and since 1982 publishes the scientific and technical magazine called "ScuolaOfficina" which is issued every six months. Since 2004, the museum holds temporary exhibitions every year.

How to get

The museum is located in the northern part of the city, in the industrial area Lame, on Via della Beverara, 123. An old city canal flows near it; at one point it was used for transportation of industrial products. The Museum for the Memory of Ustica can be found nearby as well. The closest bus stop which is called Beverara is located 400 meters away. Buses № 11 and 30 travel here.

Opening hours: depend on the season.

• From September 16 to June 15: from Tuesday to Friday from 09:00 to 13:00, from Saturday to Sunday from 09:00 to 18:30. Closed on Mondays.
• From June 16 to September 15: the museum can be entered only if the visit is booked in advance at least three days before it.

Contact number for inquiries: (+39) 051 635 6611.

Admission: a full ticket costs 5 euros, reduced one (for people aged 18–25 and over 65, groups of over ten people) – 3 euros. Children under 18 are free of charge. The information about admission and opening hours may be changed.