Ooms building

The oldest Rhine shipping company for bulk goods W. van Driel Stoomboot- & Transportbedrijven (W. van Driel Steamboat & Transport Companies) was founded in 1888 by Willem van Driel sr. (1845-1911), with headquarters on the Noordereiland in Rotterdam on the Maaskade to operate a tugboat company and to focus on mass transport to the Rhine of grain, ore, etc.

Willem van Driel Sr. had worked his way up from sailor to captain on the Waal tugboat Nieuwe Zorg, which he later purchased, before setting up his tugboat company. The first tugboat in a series, called Fiat Voluntas I, was launched in 1884 at the Wilton shipyard in Rotterdam. These tugs usually had a length of about 30 metres (98 ft) and a draft of 2 metres (6 ft 7 in), which made them excellent for navigation on the Rhine. In the end, 29 tugs were built or bought between 1884 and 1966. In 1913 the fleet had already been expanded to 17 tugs and 41 towage vessels. In the end, more than 80 towage vessels were built or bought, mainly named W. van Driel 34 to 72, and seven motor vessels, the last of which was scrapped in 1985. Between 1916 and 1937, 13 more coasters were built. In the following years, a 700-ton crane vessel, a 1,550-ton tow crane and steamships followed. In the beginning of the 1980s, eight cargo barges were built. Director Willem van Driel jr. built his first office at Maaskade 113, which was occupied in 1915,

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