A group of visitors dressed as factory workers from the 1950s scurry among the cafes and landscaped paths at Jinyi Park in Hedong district, Tianjin.
They collect work badges, search for technical drawings, solve riddles and try virtual machine operations as part of an immersive game at the former Tianjin No 1 Machine Tool Works. Hunting for clues in old workshops and offices, they follow routines that were once part of everyday life in the compound.
Outside, visitors sit on the lawns and indulge in a variety of activities with their friends and pets.
Yang Zhong, a researcher at the housing and urban-rural development commission of Hedong district, said the challenge has been to inject the old factory with a new lease on life without losing its original character.
"We wanted to preserve, as much as possible, the feeling of the original factory's spatial layout," Yang said.
The Tianjin factory was one of the State-owned machine tool enterprises known as the "18 Arhats", a group of key enterprises that helped develop the country's machinery industry. Established in 1951, it produced China's first all-gear transmission lathe with independent intellectual property rights.
After production moved to Xiqing district, more than 20 kilometers away, the old compound eventually fell idle. A State-owned company began planning its revitalization in 2020, and the renewal project got underway in 2023.
The wider project covers about 730,000 square meters, including the former factory compound of roughly 280,000 sq m and 15 surrounding residential compounds. Within the factory site, more than 20 old industrial buildings have been retained for renovation and reuse.
The transformation reflects Tianjin's efforts to reinvigorate old industrial compounds while preserving their important role in the nation's development.
One of China's major industrial cities, Tianjin was once home to bustling textile, machinery and light-industrial sectors. But as factories relocated or closed amid industrial restructuring, many compounds fell into disuse, opening the way for their repurposing as cultural, tourism and leisure destinations.
Restoring character
The Jinyi Park renewal team worked with a design institute affiliated with Tianjin University to assess buildings individually. Their age, history, former functions and preservation value were taken into consideration, Yang said.
Some could be retained mostly as they were, while others needed major repairs or remodeling to make them useful again. Decades of neglect and updated fire-safety requirements added to the workload.
One building required particular care. Built in 1951 to accommodate Soviet experts working at the factory, it had an exterior made of specially treated and strengthened bricks. Over the years, the exterior had been covered with pale yellow paint. Photographs from the 1970s showed that the original brickwork was red, said Lyu Hong, chief engineer of the renovation project.
The team removed the yellow paint, only to find that some bricks were damaged or missing, and parts of the structure were uneven. Different methods were used to repair the facade, including replacing missing sections and applying brick pieces and brick powder. But not every damaged section was concealed.
"We kept some of the bricks that were badly damaged so people could still see their original condition," Lyu said.
The team also addressed uneven settlement of the structure through brickwork repairs and grouting. The walkway outside was repaired, while inside the original terrazzo floor, wooden floorboards, timber roof, staircase, railings and dado wall features were preserved or restored.
When sunlight falls across the old staircase, the beauty of the terrazzo floor and wooden details that survived more than seven decades are highlighted. "The way the light changes across this space is especially moving," Lyu said. The building's old materials and changing light, she said, are part of what gave the interior its character.
The renovated building opened in November 2025, with Yichi Garden cafe as a new tenant. Plants, books, lighting and furnishings have been added, but the original structural details remain. Customers can eat, read, work, cosplay or spend time with friends in rooms that once accommodated the factory's Soviet experts.
"When customers enter the space and see these machines and the surroundings, they feel as if they are having a conversation with time," said cafe manager Wan Bifeng.
"Former factory workers sometimes return to the compound, recognize machinery displayed downstairs and tell us that they once worked with the equipment," she said.
The renewal team had to work with aspects of the industrial site that could not easily be moved or removed.
"We designed the roads around the old trees rather than moving them to make way for the roads," Yang said.
A former factory canteen presented a particular challenge.
It had been earmarked for demolition to make way for a road planned to pass through the site. Instead, the team designed an open central space with glass curtain walls on both sides.
The glass sections can be dismantled if the road eventually goes ahead, allowing the building to remain in use for now, Yang said.
The team took a similar approach to the factory's equipment, incorporating overhead cranes, columns, old machines and machine parts into the renewed spaces.
Museum pieces
Housed in a former workshop at Jinyi Park, the Tianjin Machine Tool Industry Museum includes three machines recovered from the original factory. The team found the machines while making an inventory of the factory's fixed assets, said Li Mengyan, a museum guide.
One is a straight bevel gear planer. Visitors can learn about its function through the exhibits or try operating a virtual version of it on an interactive screen, turning controls and pressing buttons to earn a score.
The museum displays extend beyond machine tools to the products and institutions that shaped the city's industrial life. They include time-honored Tianjin brands such as White Rose household goods, Guifaxiang fried dough twists, Yumeijing skincare products and Sea-gull watches, alongside exhibits about local universities and newer technology companies. Together, they reflect the range of Tianjin's manufacturing and commercial history, from everyday household products and traditional snacks to skincare and watchmaking.
Li said the museum plans to include more local manufacturers in its collection.
The reuse of idle industrial buildings at Jinyi Park is part of Tianjin's wider urban renewal agenda. The city's special urban renewal plan for the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) period, announced in May, sets out 26 key tasks and identifies 215 urban renewal areas.
It calls for the revitalization of idle and inefficient factory buildings, stronger protection of industrial heritage and the development of new uses and business models.
Elevated experience
Before Lyu Chenghua became involved in the redevelopment of a disused textile factory in Xiqing district, weeds choked its grounds. Redbrick workshops that had stood idle for years, offered little indication of the restaurants, cafes and bars that would eventually fill the compound.
Lyu, an investor in the redevelopment, had considered 13 sites for an industrial-themed project before settling on the former textile factory. He wanted something different from a conventional commercial complex.
"When you develop a site in an old factory, people are drawn to the city's memories, its industrial character and the stories behind it," he said.
His concept has materialized via an elevated walkway known as the Years Corridor that spans more than 200 meters, connecting 35 buildings.
Visitors climb a retro-style staircase to look across a patchwork of redbrick roofs and old trees growing between buildings with the city's modern skyline in the background.
The elevated route is among the site's most recognizable attractions, with designated spots for photographs and nearly 30 other interactive features aimed at younger visitors. On the restored roof of an old workshop, visitors can walk across weathered tiles.
The former factory has become a place to eat, drink, shop and spend an evening out.
The Tianjin Sezhi Factory tourism and leisure block opened to the public in May 2026. In its first three months of trial operation, it received about 2 million visits, according to local media reports. Average daily foot traffic exceeded 20,000 on weekdays and 30,000 on weekends and holidays, the reports said.
Around 100 businesses occupy about 15,000 sq m of renovated space. They include restaurants, specialty coffee and tea shops, children's activities centers, creative retail outlets and intangible cultural heritage workshops.
For Lyu's team, the challenge was to make these businesses functional without erasing the history of the original buildings.
Tenants have retained original workshop layouts and industrial features in their designs. Some coffee shops have built counters over abandoned textile-machine stations, while restaurants leave steel beams and concrete walls exposed. Creative shops use old yarn spindles and weaving shuttles as display pieces.
The restoration itself required considerable work. Some walls had collapsed and had to be rebuilt on their original sites, while roofs needed repair or replacement, Lyu said.
Whatever you like
The team has also adjusted the mix of art, culture, catering and other businesses to draw customers with different tastes.
"What we're building is tourism and culture combined with consumption," Lyu said.
Some restaurants serve customers until 2 or 3 am, while some bars stay open until 5 am. Where textile production once set the rhythm of the site, diners, music fans and late-night customers now keep its lights on.
Tianjin Zhiwanfeng restaurant is run by Zhao Dongfang, who worked in equipment manufacturing for more than 20 years. He said he had passed the former textile factory many times without knowing much about its history.
One evening in May, Zhao noticed lights at the site while driving past. He returned the next day to look around. The outdoor space and a stage caught his attention, and he decided to rent a space for a restaurant.
"I like the industrial style. It makes people feel comfortable and relaxed," Zhao said.
His restaurant opened in mid-July. Its indoor area covers about 300 sq m, with the outdoor section a similar size. It opens at 9:30 am, serving coffee, cold drinks and desserts during the day before shifting to dinner, drinks and live music in the evening.
Three singers perform daily, according to Zhao. The restaurant usually stays open until about 2 am, although some customers remain until 4 am. Most of the evening crowd is young, he said.
At Yichi Garden cafe, Wan has seen repeat and first-time customers drawn by the building's Soviet-era atmosphere. Her team has adapted the space to accommodate different usages.
A room that attracted visitors wanting to take photographs proved disruptive for diners, so the team created a designated photo area downstairs, she said.
Wan herself has found the quieter corners useful.
"Sometimes, I retreat to a private room in the former experts' building, just to enjoy the calm atmosphere, so I can better concentrate my mind on the paperwork," she said.
Contact the writers at yangfeiyue@chinadaily.com.cn
