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De Melkfabriek
1955-1957 / Marinus Breebaart (1913-1993) en technisch bureau Martens en Kramer

Larenseweg 32, Hilversum

In 1955, the construction of a hypermodern dairy factory on the Larenseweg was commissioned by the United Gooise Milk Companies (VGM). The design of the factory was made by the Hilversum architect Marinus Breebaart (1913-1993) in collaboration with the technical office of Martens and Kramer from Oosterhout. Construction took 2.5 years. The factory is an exemplary example of industrial architecture from the reconstruction period. In 2005, the dairy was designated a municipal monument as a ‘great example of functionalist architecture’.

Modernistic design language

The efficient and functionally furnished factory is characterized by its clear, post-war modernist design language. Concrete was used for the construction, brick for facade infill, and steel and glass. The roof construction, which consists of shell roofs for the factory part and flat roofs for the other business units, is also typical of the reconstruction period. The visible concrete construction on the outside of the factory was sprayed white with crystal cement (a protective cement layer). The concrete skeleton was in some places filled with brown-red brick and in other places with concrete windows with rod division or steel windows.

Collaboration between Breebaart and Martens and Kramer

Marinus Breebaart worked as an architect in post-war Hilversum, where he carried out renovations and designed several bungalows or country houses and outbuildings (barns, garages). He was known to director Bakker of the VGM, whose house he had designed in 1953. Together with Bakker, he held discussions with the municipality on behalf of the VGM about the construction of the new factory. For the design of the Milk Factory, Breebaart worked together with the technical office of Martens and Kramer from Oosterhout, who were associated as architects with the Brabantse Zuivelbond. Presumably they contributed the technical knowledge required for the construction of such a factory.

Most beautiful and modern in Europe

The factory complex was officially opened on Thursday 21 November 1957 by Mayor Boot in the presence of two hundred invited guests. According to the mayor, the architecture could join the row of monumental buildings in Hilversum. ir. B. van Dam, then chairman of the Dairy Product Board, called the factory the most beautiful and modern drinking milk company in Europe. On the opening day, Prince Bernhard paid an unofficial visit to the factory. He was extensively informed about the modern methods of milk processing.

Repurposing

The dairy factory remained in operation for almost fifty years but was finally decommissioned in 2005. After several years of vacancy, it was successfully converted into a multifunctional building in the early 2010s, which includes a kindergarten, a housing corporation and several apartments. The most important features, such as the large drive-through hall (where the milk cans with raw milk could be delivered without inconvenience to local residents), the mushroom columns, the special shell roof and the functionalist architecture have largely been preserved.