La revue scientifique pour les recherches sur Bruxelles / Het wetenschappelijk tijdschrift voor onderzoek over Brussel / The Journal of Research on Brussels Collection générale | 2020 Kleinschalige productieruimte behouden in de stad: de casus van Brusselse bouwbedrijven (1965-2016) Maintenir l'espace de production de petite taille en ville : le cas des entreprises de construction bruxelloises (1965-2016) Maintaining small-scale production space in the city: the case of Brussels construction companies (1965-2016
La revue scientifique pour les recherches sur Bruxelles / Het wetenschappelijk tijdschrift voor onderzoek over Brussel / The Journal of Research on Brussels Collection générale | 2020Maintaining small-scale production space in the city: the case of Brussels construction companies Maintenir l'espace de production de petite taille en ville : le cas des entreprises de construction bruxelloises Kleinschalige productieruimte behouden in de stad: de casus van Brusselse bouwbedrijven
In construction history research, the focus is often on large and prominent enterprises, whilst small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) remain largely overlooked. Yet, in Brussels, like in other major cities like London, 67% of construction workers were employed in SMEs in 1896 -a number that remained relatively constant until today. Accordingly, these historically long-neglected members of the urban construction industry were largely responsible for meeting the growing demand for building and ongoing maintenance during the city's expansion during the 19th and 20th centuries. SMEs can, therefore, be considered as equally crucial and persistent players in urban construction economies. This paper seeks to sketch a broader framework of the Brussels' construction industry during the past two centuries, including both SMEs and larger enterprises. We particularly focus on iron and steel builders, including merchants, foundries, forges and steel joiners, yet also draw comparisons with another subsector, namely joiners and carpenters.
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