Luigi Micheletti Award

“A dark mine entrance, faintly lit. A sudden movement on the right. When your eyes become used to the dark you see a life-sized miner, kneeling in a cross-heading. As you approach, he starts to speak. The miner talks about his work in one of the former coal mines in South Limburg. In the background you can hear the jackhammers and the voices of his mates. A little later you stand in the middle of a metalworking shop from the 1930s. Rotating shafts and wheels, leather drive belts an internal racket. Slowly the smell of leather and oil fills the air…..

These are the impressions you receive when you visit Industrion in Kerkrade. In addition to the typical Limburg topics, such as the coalmines and the syrup factory, themes that are not related to this region are covered by the museum, such as the recession years, environmental issues, eating & drinking and the consumer society. Exciting exploratorium sections, distributed throughout the museum, let you feel how a crankshaft works or discover what static electricity is used for. Supported by effect lighting and multimedia programs, you can hear the story of men, women and children in factories, at home and in their free time. 150 years of life, work and play are at the heart of this fascinating interactive museum.

Industrion is more than just an exciting hands-on museum for children and adults alike.
The discover concept has been applied in “the Lab” of the museum. The aim is to interest children for technical education and professions. Children can experiment with different Science Boxes. These Science Boxes contain parts enabling them to build a powerless radio, a motion detector, a doorbell or windgong. Techniques play an important role in these Science Boxes and have a relationship with themes in the museum.

Industrion also offers quest-sheets, tasker-sheets, individually tailored programmes, complete day-programmes for business or recreational events and of course school-visits. There are flexible spaces for permanent and temporary exhibitions, including an outdoor area for large-scale projects and a well equipped hall for lectures, demonstrations and theater.

Industrion is located in the centre of Kerkrade at the heart of the Euregion. Historic cities such as Aachen, Maastricht. Liège and Cologne are within easy reach.

The impact of the Luigi Micheletti Award
 Winning the Michelletti Award was an important moment in the short history of Industrion. The award was a reassurance of the idea and vision behind the concept of the museum. It positioned Industrion in the field of sience and technology museums in Europe. The spin off was that Industrion was seen as a serious partner in national and international projects. Winning the award gave a tremendous boost to the media attention and created a lot of publicity. The award gave a positive signal in the direction of governments, financial partners.