Restoration of the Yağcı Olive Oil Factory in Burhaniye

Zeytin üretimi Akdeniz bölgesinde Antik Çağ' dan günümüze kadar ekonomik ve sosyal açıdan önemli olmuştur. Zeytinden aydınlatma amacıyla, ayrıca yiyecek, ilaç ve sabun yapımında yararlanılmıştır. Zeytin yetiştiriciliği Anadolu'nun özellikle batı bölgelerinde bugün de önemli bir gelir kaynağıdır. Antik dönemden bu yana zeytinyağı üretiminde kullanılan yöntemler ilke açısından büyük değişikliğe uğramamıştır. Bugünkü üretim teknolojisi de antik uygulamalarda olduğu gibi iki ana aşamadan oluşur. İlk aşama toplama ve temizleme alt başlıklarını içerir. Fabrikada gerçekleştirilen ikinci aşamada ise geleneksel veya kontinü sistemle çalışılır. Burada ele alman Burhaniye'deki Yağcı Zeytinyağı Fabrikası geleneksel sistemin uygulandığı bir tesistir. Fabrika 19. yüzyılda inşa edilmiş, zamanla el değiştirmiş, yeni işlevlerle kullanılmış ve 1980'li yıllarda da terk edilmiştir. Yapı topluluğu, yağhane, sabunhane, yatakhane, mutfak ve depolardan oluşmaktadır. Bir yeniden kullanım önerisini amaçlayan bu çalışmanın ilk aşamasında fabrika yapılarının rölöveleri alınarak gereken ölçeklerde çizilmiştir. Yağcı Zeytinyağı Fabrikası'nın özgün durumunun canlandırabilmek için ayrıntılı mimari gözlemler yapılmış, ekler ve değişiklikler saptanmış ve aynı dönemden başka fabrika yapılan incelenmiştir. Bu verilere dayanan restitüsyonun ardından bir restorasyon ve yeniden kullanım önerisi geliştirilmiştir. Buna göre, yapı özgün işlevi dikkate alınarak bir üretim ve kültür merkezine dönüştürülmüştür eski deponun, bir giriş yapısı niteliğinde, sabun ve yağ satış dükkanları ile danışmayı içerir durumda yeniden düzenlenmesi önerilmektedir. Sabunhane ve yağhane yapılarındaki üretimin küçük ölçekte devam etmesi amaçlanmıştır. Mekanlar, sergi alanları, çok amaçlı salon ve bir kafeteryayla zenginleştirilmiştir. Bahçede yer alan mutfağın eski işleviyle hizmet vermesi uygun bulunmuştur. Yatakhane kanadının Burhaniye'deki Kız Meslek Lisesi'nin atölyeleri olarak yıl boyu kullanılması ön görülmüştür. Bu kanadın yanma küçük bir konaklama tesisi eklenmiştir. Mal sahibinin evi yerinde korunacak, tesisten bir çitle ayrılacaktır. Bu uygulamayla Burhaniye'ye kültür ve turizm amaçlı bir çekim merkezi kazandırılması düşünülmüştür.Restoration of the Yağcı Olive Oil Factory in Burhaniye Olive oil is one of the major products of the Mediterranean basin. Olive tree has been planted from the late Neolithic period onwards and is still an important industrial plant of especially eastern regions of the Mediterranean. Starting with the Bronze Age, olive oil has been produced both for royal circles (for instance on Crete in the Minoan period) for the needs of the palace and by other people on the countryside for their own consumption. Besides being a commercial good whose trade was a medium for wealth and political power, olive oil was related to religious matters too, as shown by abundant mythological episodes of Greek and Roman cultures. The main stages of processing olive to gain olive oil remained almost the same throughout the centuries. Flat surfaces for pressing, troughs, basins and grooves for collecting and leading away the flowing material of the different phases of the olive oil production, all carved out of the solid rock are surviving evidences of the ancient technology. Ancient workshops are thought to have been of wood. First of the two main stages of processing the olive can be summarized as collecting and cleaning of the pieces. In the second stage, the stones and the flesh of the olive are separated from each other and the mash which comes out is pressed. Maximum care should be given to prevent the stones and the pressed flesh from getting mixed up. For this second stage several methods (for instance those called Tudicula, Mola Olearia or Trapetum) have been developed. The modern system where hydraulic presses are used to produce olive oil is quite similar to the basic stages of the ancient technology. The modern, or today's technology in general also consists of two main stages while treating the olive in order to produce olive oil. Here again, the first stage can be divided into two parts as collecting and cleaning where now scientific methods supported by the experiences and observations of the olive oil producers are applied. The second stage on the other hand, comprises, unlike in the ancient period, the complex process realized in a factory building. The production technology today is based on two main systems: xm-Traditional system -Continuous system Modern factories have a unit called "yağhane" (or sometimes locally called "tasirhane") where olive oil is produced together with its side productions such as soap and "prina". For pressing, stone (granite) mills are used as a reminiscence of the ancient technology. Pressing is followed by two different methods in the traditional system. One is the use of hydraulic presses and the other is the use of "super" presses. In the factories working with the traditional system, presses are fixed on an elevated floor about 1-1. 5m high. The continuous system on the other side, uses metal mills to press the olives in the beginning. Apart from that, an extra process is needed for a better mixing of the mash. To separate the olive oil from the whole of the mash which than still contains the particules of the olive stones, two methods are practiced: -Centrifugal system -Percolation The traditional system needs frequent maintenance, though its investment does not necessitate a great amount of money. For this reason the factories located in the Aegean region where the traditional system prevails and the modernization costs are too high, are loosing their customers because of insufficient production. At the same time, the land speculation in the region threatens the existence of old factories working with the traditional system. The "Yağcı Olive Oil Factory" which is dealt with in this study is located in Burhaniye, a coastal town in the northern Aegean region of Turkey. This part of Anatolia has been a centre for olive planting from the Antiquity onwards. Especially in the Ayvalık and Burhaniye districts, dozens of factories were established in the 19th century. The "Yağcı Factory" is a private investment which has been handed over in course of time. The building bears many modifications and additions. The XIVfactory used to work with traditional system and like many other factories in the region, it was abandoned in the 1980's. The building is in a garden surrounded by a wall about 1.5m high. The garden is used for transportation and temporary storage purposes. The factory itself is a compound of several architectural masses of different dimensions and functions. The guard's room, the olive oil storage and the main part "yağhane" build up a group in the north of the garden. In the south, one finds the dormitories of the workers and in the east the olive storage, toilets and the kitchen. This scheme reveals that the factory once included all the fundamental parts with the necessary quantity of area which should be found in an olive oil factory. An intensive examination of every single flank with the rooms inside and the main buildings shows that the complex has been constructed in many phases. Certain rooms and/or connections between rooms have been altered in course of time according to the needs. The interventions are mostly non-structural. Some openings have been walled up, new circulation areas, which are not included in the original design, have been created or repairs have been undertaken as seen by their traces. The general state of the building today can be defined as fair. There are no traces of serious structural damages. After having been abandoned, the building was used for storage purposes in general. Certain rooms have been even used for living for some time. These uses, though they were no more directly related to the original functions, obviously helped keeping the building in a more or less good condition until today. However, as a completely abandoned building, now kept empty and unguarded, the factory is in need of an immediate care. Following a detailed architectural survey and documentation, a proposal for restoration and re-use is presented. The drawings include plans, sections and elevations of the building with the scale of 1/50. Plans of the general layout, as well as of certain details related to the original equipment or to the building itself are also submitted. The restitution takes into account the earthquake of 1940's and gives the original design of the first floor elevation of the main building. While doing this, the Hüsnü Tolun Oil Factory -another 19th century building in Burhaniye- was taken as xva base, since it bears similar architectural features as the Yağcı Olive Oil Factory, which is the subject matter of this study. The proposed restoration and the re-use of the factory aims to underline the former function of the building. Care is given in order not to let the future users forget that the original function of the building was an olive oil factory. The structural characteristics and the still existing pieces of the original machinery stimulated the ideas for restoration and re-use. Another aspect which has been taken as a starting point is the location of the building near the centre of the town; further the location of that town as somewhere close to some major touristic spots such as Ayvalık, Dikili and Bergama. According to the project, the building will be converted into an architectural complex to serve for cultural and touristic purposes. The former oil storage which was once used as stable for camels for a while, will now be the entrance building. It houses a reception and two shops where soap and olive oil will be sold. The main buildings with soap and olive oil production units will partially keep their original functions, so that soap and olive oil can be produced in a smaller scale. These buildings will be the centre of the cultural activities in the whole complex. A multi-purpose hall for exhibitions and meetings and a cafeteria will be available in the soap production unit, whereas a part of the olive oil production unit will be re-organized as a permanent exhibition area devoted to the history of soap and olive oil production with traditional methods. In the garden, the kitchen of the factory will be used according to its original function where light meals and drinks can be prepared. The flank where the dormitories of the workers once situated is going to be re-arranged as workshops of the School of Applied Arts and Crafts for girls, of which the main building is in the centre of Burhaniye. In the summer months, these rooms will be used for special national and international workshop activities. In the south, a short flank with rooms is going to be built next to the old dormitories and will serve as a pension. Finally, the house of the owner will preserve its function. A fence will be built in order to separate it from the rest of the complex, to provide privacy.M.Sc.Yüksek Lisan