A law on public grain warehouses was passed in 1933, stimulating their construction with the help of favourable state loans. Josef Kouba, Secretary General of Slovenská roľnícka jednota (Slovak peasant union), commissioned Miloš Svitavský (1900 - 1964) to draw up model warehouses for the newly established Družstvo zemedelských obilných verejných skladísk - DZEVOS (Cooperative of Public Agricultural Grain Warehouses). In 1936, after the construction of several large-capacity silos following his designs, the cooperative merged with Ústredné družstvo (Central Cooperative) in Bratislava, forming Zväz hospodárskych družstiev a verejných obilných skladísk (Association of Economic Cooperatives and Public Grain Warehouses), which began the second stage of the silos' construction. Despite the many silos built at this time, the unique functionalist combined warehouse in Trnava from 1936-1937 with a capacity of up to 1,000 wagons of grain became an icon. Almost a third of the building is formed by a 32 Rank-type silo section, the facade of which is emphasised by accentuated vertical strips. On the second part of the building, the seven-storey granary, the author has designed distinctive horizontal strips with massive iron windows allowing ventilation and illumination of the space. The low storey height (2.5 m) and high load capacity (1.5 t/m2) were achieved by using columns with mushroom caps. The roof is even reinforced against aerial bombs. An interesting accent on the facade is the row of round window openings, which emphasises the position of the staircase in the exterior. The turrets on the roof shelter technological equipment.
Bibliography:
FOLTYN, Ladislav: Slovenská architektúra a česká avantgarda 1918-1939. Bratislava, SAS 1993.
Slovenský staviteľ: úradný orgán Spoločenstva staviteľov pre Slovensko v Bratislave. Bratislava: Organizačná jednota staviteľov pre Slovensko. 9, 1939, 7, s. 113-116.
