In collaboration with SORAVIA, CMb.industries applied for the former coffin production factory in the 23rd district in 2017 and was awarded the contract by the Vienna Housing Fund. In the course of this, a utilization concept was developed, an architectural competition was announced and carried out and interim management was assumed. The ground-breaking ceremony for the extension took place in January 2023.
Excerpts from the concept
Liesing is flourishing. In the midst of new residential areas, schools and kindergartens lies a silent witness to days long past: the former coffin factory. It is high time to turn its position away from death and towards life. From 1968 to 2013, coffins were manufactured in the former machine box and wooden goods factory in Breitenfurter Straße. After its closure, only a few parts remained in use. As an interim use, vacant areas were used for cultural events. The listed building comprises office and storage space, former staff apartments and production halls as well as a water tower and currently has a total usable area of around 4,000m2. This is now being carefully revitalized in accordance with the preservation order.
We are now aware of the cultural wealth, the historical heritage and the importance of creative districts for European cities and regions – it is a great responsibility that goes hand in hand with this. The order of the day is to draw on these intrinsic strengths, promote their importance and forge alliances to drive their cultivation forward with empathetic energy and intellectual pioneering spirit. It is therefore not about distributing a creative cake, but about creating a ‘confectionery’ that creates new cakes. From the perspective of Tabakfabrik Linz and the creative industries, I can say that networking is the central theme of our time. Even in the past, craftspeople knew that networking increased their maturity – carpenters went on a journey and cathedral builders went on a journey to acquire master quality and exchange ideas. We need to transfer this networking to the present day. And so our mission is to connect brownfield areas as points in a neural network.
At the same time, promoting culture and the arts is also promoting the economy. The cultural environment of a region has long been a decisive location factor in attracting companies. Now, states and municipalities are increasingly recognizing the importance of creative companies and are setting up contact points to promote the industry. The innovation potential is not only very high within the creative industries, but also acts as a driver of innovative products and services in other sectors. The creative industries thus become a multiplier for value creation, growth and employment and also make a significant contribution to the creation of sustainable jobs – especially in small and medium-sized enterprises -, to increasing the attractiveness of cities and regions as business locations and to strengthening regional innovation systems. The redevelopment of the Sargfabrik is about fulfilling a strong need of the creative industry, which is of central importance for the future competitiveness of the location: the sustainable development of an up-and-coming district and the promotion of the growth sector of the creative industries with an international focus and national anchoring.
But if you want to shape the future, you have to look to the past. In the development of brownfields, the treasures of history should be carefully salvaged in order to carefully transition the area into its next evolutionary step. In the case of exceptional buildings, of which the coffin factory is undoubtedly one, as much of the substance as possible should be preserved in accordance with the preservation order. Above all, the characteristic functional layout of the building should remain comprehensible. The current use of the Sargfabrik as an event location should be largely retained and supplemented with other uses, such as catering areas, offices, workshops, rehearsal rooms, etc. In the transformation of the listed property, the focus is on the targeted promotion, participation and involvement of the existing and emerging environment. Only the lively diversity of possible uses and their establishment guarantee the successful repositioning of this architectural jewel for different population groups.
This diversity means maintaining the stage for art and culture in the immediate vicinity of profit-oriented private companies, voluntary initiatives, state institutions and individuals. This mix creates mutual exchange and nourishes a fruitful cooperation. The refurbishment of the listed property will be carried out in close coordination with the Federal Monuments Office and in several stages. The step-by-step approach is intended to ensure the continuity of the functioning cultural operations and maintain cooperation with the resident association F23 for the continuation of interim cultural use for as long as possible.
We need to create a new awareness: both for the ingenuity that goes hand in hand with cultural achievements and for the need to reinterpret the creative work factor and its spatial needs. We must therefore develop spaces in which a cumulative, evolutionary improvement process can flourish through collaboration. An “ecology of making” that can be characterized by constant experimentation and tinkering by human hands. The production line of the coffin factory comes back to life, only now it is no longer the song of death but the Rhapsody in Liesing Blue that resounds through the halls.
Architectural competition
In an architectural competition chaired by Prof. Wolf D. Prix from Coop Himmelb(l)au, the design by Shibukawa Eder Architects came out on top. The ground-breaking ceremony took place in 2023.
