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Dutch canteen and corporate restaurants tokens

Started by jezuss, January 16, 2019, 07:51:36 PM

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Figleaf

The history of the Cincinnati milling machine corporation is here and yonder.

Cincinnati must have found Vlaardingen attractive. Accessible for sea-going ships, trains and highways nearby and cheaper than, but close to Rotterdam with its secondary airport. The attraction was mutual. Vlaardingen had suffered from second world war bombing and wanted to rebuild a stable society, based on the heavy industry that would appreciate its strong points.

The two found each other in 1954. Cincinnati built a good-looking factory on Schiedamsedijk 20, now Schiedamsedijk 110, close to a deep sea port, a rail track and a highway. Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands opened it. Perhaps not coincidentally, Vlaardingen started building a new quarter, Westwijk, in the same year. It was planned to house 20 000 people, labour and middle class, have four shopping centres, three schools (the cost of segmentation), a medical centre, a sports complex, an extensive town garden and churches. Exactly the sort of environment that would appeal to prospective Cincinnati employees.

The building is now known as the Cincinnati building. The company became Milacron and moved on eventually. Vlaardingen acquired a deserved image of pollution and noise disturbance and stagnated. Westwijk was thoroughly renovated and reorganised in the period 1995-2005. Still, Cincinnati provided a needed impetus to the local economy, Cincinnati profited from low wages and high post-war growth. It is a telling, positive sign that its building still carries its name.

Peter

KB802.jpg
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

Figleaf

An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

Figleaf

After the second world war, the Dutch pulled together to repair their heavily damaged country and their devastated economy. The period 1947 to 1967 would become perhaps the most successful in the history of the country.

Politicians, still divided among catholics, protestants and neutrals and trade unions, divided along the same lines, could not stay behind. Led by minister of agriculture Sicco Mansholt, architect of the EU common agricultural policy, the temporary alliance brought forth a number of practice based agrarian part-time schools, tasked with the promotion of mechanisation and specialisation on high yield products. Clearly, the intention was to prevent a repetition of the famine of 1944. Horst, in the deep South, received two of these schools, one specialising on poultry and pig farming, the other on mushroom growing.

As the danger of famine receded, the schools expanded their activity to research. The formula works so well that farmer's sons from other countries, notably East Asia, Africa and Central America come to attend the schools. The international interest prodded the schools to reform themselves to integrate in the Dutch national educational system. In 1993, they re-group in three organisations, IPC-Dier (animal), IPC-Plant and IPC-Groene ruimte (environment). IPC stands voor Innovatie- en Praktijk Centrum - practical centre for innovation. Horst is part of IPC-Dier, issuing the token attached.

Meanwhile, Mansholt's European system had become a money-devouring monster. Reforms were inevitable, the ever shrinking agricultural sector is getting smaller even more rapidly and the schools react by pulling together again in 1999. IPC-Dier and IPC-Plant merge, but the mushroom school in Horst achieves independence. The combined schools change their name to Practisch Training Centrum / Practical Training Centre.

Since 2009, PTC has merged with some other, less agrarian schools to form the Aeres group. Horst focusses on environment and cattle farming.

Peter

KB2192.jpg
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

Figleaf

In 1994, Charles van Goch started a temp agency that connected students to enterprises in the hospitality sector. "Mise en place" is hospitality sector jargon for preparing the serving of food and drinks. The first HQ was a converted garage in a garage in Maastricht, but in 1995, the fledgling enterprise had a turnover of 1½ million Dutch guilders. In those first years, the company had its own catering arm, a prime suspect in where this token was used. As the company became international (in the Dutch meaning of the word: doing business in Flanders and the most Westerly German Länder), the catering arm was wound up.

The company became a known quantity in large international events, ranging from soccer world championships to the annual art fair in Maastricht (TEFAF). It developed new labels for different facets of their specialty, which remained basically the same: intermediary agency for young people to do temporary hospitality sector jobs. Its HQ is now in Utrecht, another university town, where the tokens were struck.

Although the token, inspired by the last series of Dutch coins before the introduction of the euro, is dated 2001, it was struck in 2000, as it bears the mark of mint master Van Schouwenburg. The reverse is turned 90° CCW for legibility.

Peter

KB93B.jpg
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

Figleaf

The above token is 9.35 gram, 30.2 mm. That is pretty close to the pre-euro 2½ gulden coin of 10 gram and 29 mm, that was, however, no longer in circulation in 2000. The token may have been used in machines, or as a bonus, e.g. for a drink or desert. Known dates are 2000-2006.

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

eurocoin

Quote from: Figleaf on August 06, 2022, 02:34:18 PMThe above token is 9.35 gram, 30.2 mm. That is pretty close to the pre-euro 2½ gulden coin of 10 gram and 29 mm, that was, however, no longer in circulation in 2000.

No longer in circulation in 2000?

jezuss

sjaakie 2008 also exists...

Figleaf

Thank you, jezuss! Not in Kooij. Different mint-master mark (sails?) I suppose there is a 2007 out there as well. I hope one day someone will use this thread to create a section on this category of tokens in WoT.

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.