{"id":1540,"date":"2016-02-02T12:46:09","date_gmt":"2016-02-02T11:46:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.revistaitransporte.com\/en\/a-golpe-de-remache\/"},"modified":"2016-02-26T14:43:06","modified_gmt":"2016-02-26T13:43:06","slug":"riveting-structures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.revistaitransporte.com\/riveting-structures\/","title":{"rendered":"Riveting structures"},"content":{"rendered":"

The renovation work is part of the comprehensive restoration project drawn up by Ineco in 2008 which sought to remedy shortcomings while remaining consistent with the historic character of the architecture. These large, riveted iron structures were built as a result of the Industrial Revolution during the 19th century and are epitomised by the Eiffel tower. Spain lagged a bit behind other cities with regard to the use of iron in architecture and engineering as can be seen in countless examples from Paris, London, Amsterdam, Belgium and Germany in addition to Boston and New York in the United States.<\/p>\n

With all of this, transport infrastructure in 19th-century Spain such as stations, bridges and viaducts requiring versatility, luminosity, spaciousness and low prices were easily adapted to the engineering of iron which was best received by engineers of that time period as well as by architects. Examples of riveted iron infrastructures in Spain include the Atocha and Delicias railway stations, the Catalonia Railway Museum, the Valencia railway station and the Aranjuez railway station \u2013the main feature of this article. Furthermore, some quite representative buildings include Sabatini\u2019s Royal Firearms Factory in Toledo and the Geological and Mining Institute of Spain, in addition to bridges and viaducts such as the prominent Triana Bridge.<\/p>\n

Spanish transport infrastructure in 19th-century such as stations, bridges and viaducts requiring versatility, luminosity, spaciousness and low prices were easily adapted to the engineering of iron<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Aranjuez station is one of the most characteristic vestiges of the industrial age of the 19th century. The earliest railway facilities at Aranjuez were built in 1851 for the line connecting Madrid with Alicante, popularly known back then as the \u2018Tren de la Fresa\u2019 (The Strawberry Train) and whose name is now in use once again for tourist services. This station also provides service to the C3 Madrid-Aranjuez commuter rail line. It is the second oldest railway line in Spain (the oldest is the Barcelona-Matar\u00f3 line, 1943) and is one of the monuments of the Royal Sites of Aranjuez, a Unesco World Heritage Landscape Site since 2001. This line originally reached all the way to the Royal Palace. The original station faced towards the palace on grounds of the company\u2019s prestige and the fact that they needed support from the monarchy. Nevertheless, this location caused so many problems affecting train traffic that it became necessary to build a new station with a completely different layout. The platform marquees are living proof of the iron beams and framework \u2013signs of progress from that time period\u2013 that were used to construct public buildings such as stations, markets, factories, libraries and bridges.<\/p>\n

The technique of riveting<\/h4>\n

The steel marquees, roofed by fibre cement and fluted glass, were built around 1851 to provide shelter over the station\u2019s three platforms which were later renovated around 1980 in order to adapt them to the trains and general regulations at that time. As can be observed in the images, the marquees suffered from corrosion problems that affected their structural framework, foundation and ornamentation due to an unsatisfactory roof water drainage system, thus causing damage to the suspended wooden ceiling and corroding the metal. Rehabilitation and restoration of these marquees was a year-long, painstaking process that rediscovered the traditional technique of riveting.<\/p>\n