Background information:
To supply the overhead lines in the Netherlands with 1500 Volt DC, substations are required, which are usually positioned every 7 km apart. These substations were built around the 1960s. The power supply comes from the medium voltage network 10Kv alternating voltage. The conversion requires, among other things, transformers, which are located outside in this type of building. And rectifiers, which are inside. In the 1960s, rectifiers still had two features that had to be paid attention to. They produced a relatively large amount of heat and had a relatively short lifespan. As a result, many of these substations had a track connection and a series of ventilation grilles. Both disappeared as the rectifiers became smaller, more reliable and less hot.
Architectural details:
The sandy yellow masonry bricks were widely used, especially in the 1960s. The brown masonry bricks, with which ventilation grilles that have become redundant, have been bricked up, therefore stand out. However, a number of original details remain, such as the lifting beams in the facade. The transformers are located on both ends of the building on concrete "tables", which have been specially designed and built for this purpose. The cabling from the transformers to the rectifiers rests on metal racks mounted on the end walls. There are fences around the transformers. Sometimes consisting of mesh, sometimes consisting of bars. There are 3 “roof vents” on the flat roof, because although today's rectifiers generate much less heat, ventilation is still necessary, especially in the summer months.
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