Renovation Koninklijk Concertgebouw Amsterdam

June 30th, 2014

The large hall of the Royal Concertgebouw Amsterdam has undergone a renovation of the flying installation during the current season. The existing system was outdated and no longer met the requirements of safe working conditions or safe keeping of loads above persons.

The hoist are situated in the attic room of the main hall. The ceiling of the main auditorium has many holes that perform three functions. The holes are there for the extraction of the air (the attic room is a kind of plenum), for placing lighting fixtures and they are also suitable as a hole for chain hoists. The Concert Hall was built in 1882 and the roof is constructed of cast iron trusses that are connected by vertically placed bracings. Because of this existing structure, it was not easy to make a design that could meet with all the wishes of the Concertgebouw.

The task was to realize an installation that should consist of more than 20 chain hoists, where each hoist can be driven above one of the 200 holes, without the need to carry chain hoists. Selection and operation of hoists can be executed from the floor of the auditorium. The installation should comply with the regulations. The deadline for installation was the 1st of June and that the budget should not be exceeded.

In close collaboration with the Concertgebouw Theateradvies made the design. The project was executed by Controllux, Prolyft and STS. The project was finished on time and within budget.