The diffusion of reinforced concrete in Portugal: industrial buildings as means of technical disclosure

Abstract

This article aims to provide information on the spread of reinforced concrete in Portugal, seeking in particular to clarify the mechanisms, the coincidences and key people who allowed, at the turn of the 20th century, the disclosure of this new construction technique in a country beginning its industrialization. For the dissemination of this new material in the  constructive context of Portugal the entrepreneurial skills of François Hennebique, creator of the best world known patent in reinforced concrete, will be fundamental. The industrial buildings will be the first able to able to maximize the technical qualities of the new material. The Fábrica de Moagem de Caramujo represents the most tangible example of what has been said. This building was the first in Portugal to be entirely built in reinforced concrete, leaving as a legacy a constructive lexicon that will find a wide use in future modern Portuguese architecture.

https://doi.org/10.14195/1645-2259_16_14