Interactive Museum of Industry(IMI) in Gabrovo

There are already 4 storeys situated in the facade “shell”. The connection between the floors is an open tri-level staircase with an elevator in its “eye”, glazed to the maximum. The corner entrance is closed and the facade is recovered in its initial outlook. The main entrance is in its original place, with both an access ramp and three stairs at the same time. The entry is through a richly decorated glazed door with stained glass and massive lion heads. Everything which can be seen on the outside is just like it was more than 120 years ago but the interior is totally changed.

The new structure of the building is already armoured concrete. The existing surrounding walls are preserved and restored; all characteristic facade ornaments and details, including the metal wind-cone, are restored and conserved, as well. The windows are changed; the new doors on the exposition levels are made of glass. All of the railings and movable and immovable partitions are made of metal and glass, consistent with the specifics of the exhibition. The building has an inner thermal isolation. The installations – water and sewage, electricity, heating, ventilation and air-conditioning – are totally new. There is impressive exterior design in terms of the facade colour and lighting. The courtyard has a new fence – a low wall of ashlars and metal grids in unison with the traditions of the town architecture from the end of 19th century and the beginning of 20th century.

By means of modern technologies – a sophisticated complex of video, program products, virtual guides and decors – the museum tells about the development of the Gabrovian industry. It is thematically divided into three parts/epochs – "Industrialisation" (end of the 19th century - 1944), "Socialism" (1944 – 1989) and "Present day" (1989 - present day). Every period is spatially separated from the others and exhibited on a different floor of the building. The interior and decorations are connected with the theme and epoch of the relevant exposition, complemented by visual, sound and lighting effects. The travel in every epoch starts with an enclosure with a virtual guide. Screens on the mid-floor landings tell about prominent Gabrovian industrialists.

The museum has a 3D-projection hall, where one can watch 3D short movies about Gabrovo, some of which has been shot from a bird’s eye view, which also offers information about the most attractive tourist sites in and close to Gabrovo. In addition, there are night illumination projections on the facade of the building using 3D mapping technology.