The old textile factory occupied an extension of almost 6 hectares in what is today the Colònia Güell Industrial Area. This area is surrounded by a wall, just as it was originally.

The factory began to be built in 1890. One year later the first building was completed and the steam engine of the yarns section went into operation there. In the subsequent years the rest of the buildings were finished, including those for dyeing, drying, looms, etc., to complete the process of transforming cotton into corduroys, velvet and velveteen.

The factory of the Colònia Güell was an exception among the industrial colonies of the times, which operated by means of the hydraulic power of the rivers by which they stood. Coal-powered steam engines were used from the start at the Colonia Güell.

The design of the factory is attributed to Ferran Alsina, an inventor and textiles expert who entered into a partnership with Eusebi Güell at the old Vapor Vell factory in the town of Sants (now annexed by Barcelona). At the Vapor Vell, Alsina contributed technical innovations and his knowledge of the technologies and organisation of the English factories. The transfer of the textile operation to the Colònia Güell was prompted by the need to enlarge the Sants factory and to achieve a social harmony that would assure the continuity of the business. In fact, Ferran Alsina himself had survived an attack perpetrated during a workers’ strike at the Vapor Vell factory in Sants.

The buildings that stand out at the factory for their architectural or constructive characteristics include those for yarn-spinning and for drying, as well as the chimney and the water tank. Facing-brick masonry is the common denominator of the buildings that were erected in the first period. The interiors were spacious. To avoid the need for interior walls, the roofs rested on wrought-iron columns that supported an assembly of girders.

The yarn-spinning building reflects the English floored-factory arrangement called the Manchester model. Each floor was devoted to one of the yarn-making processes, by which cotton was converted into thread.

The dryer buildings look different from the rest because the bricks are laid to form louvers that allow the passage of air while preventing the entry of direct sunlight, in order to dry the manufactured fabrics without loss of colour.

The map in the picture window indicates the location of the buildings and their functions.

The factory closed down in 1973 during a widespread crisis of the textile industry. In the years following its closure, the owner company went about selling off the factory premises in small portions, which finally gave rise to a complex system of uses and facilities that affected the architectural heritage and the overall image of the Colony.

With the turn of the century, a company devoted to the rehabilitation of the industrial heritage began the process of purchasing the areas occupied by small companies. The most emblematic buildings have now been or are in the process of being rehabilitated. The rehabilitation project for the first buildings was developed by the architect Oscar Tusquets.

With this rehabilitation, the old buildings are recovering the original appearance of their facing-brick masonry and their character as witnesses to a historical period and an industrial model. These buildings are now adapted to accommodate new companies, most of which belong to the services sector.

The common areas and services of the industrial area are managed by the Colònia Güell Industrial Area Association, which is formed by the owner companies of the area’s premises.