12 Preface16 Part 0 18 Mission of Koelhuis District Eindhoven22 Summary28 Impact32 Introduction26 Timeline40 Koelhuis District Vocabulary48 Part 1 History of Koelhuis Eindhoven: From Refrigeration to Regeneration54 History of Eindhoven and the Area68 From a Small Dairy Factory in Eindhoven to the Largest Dairy Giant in the World96 Phase 1. A Polar Bunker Filled with Ice Cream. 1969 – 1980146 Building Community: The Social Fabric of Industrial Production168 Phase 2. The Start of the Decay. 1980 – 2015178 Phase 3. Preserving Industrial Heritage and Giving Back the Icon to the City. 2017 – Onwards221 Summary224 Part 2 Creating a New Cultural District On the East Side of the City230 Eindhoven—A City Designed to Shine250 Immersive Experiences (IX). Uniting Design and Technology276 Introducing Koelhuis District Eindhoven310 Program Vision358 Spatial Vision and Innovative Approaches to Urban Transformation402 Urban Program437 Summary440 Image Credits445 ColophonKoelhuis District Eindhoven is a cultural district centered around immersive experience (IX), media art, and contemporary culture, named after the monumental former freezer warehouse.This book tells the story of the Koelhuis District—a culturaldistrict on the east side of Eindhoven that uses the power of IX to create a vibrant, creativity-driven neighborhood. Named after the Koelhuis Eindhoven, a cultural heritage monument that once served as a freezing warehouse for the neighboring Campina dairy and ice-making factory, the district is a symbol of Eindhoven’s innovative spirit. Centered around immersive experience (IX), media art, and contemporary culture, the district merges affordable housing, makerspaces and cultural andtech hub, becoming a permanent incubator for creative and tech talent.By reinforcing Eindhoven’s position as the design and tech capitalof the Netherlands, it will become a home to Europe’s first immersivetech district.