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Joan Collins THE industrial past of the city will be studied thanks to an agreement signed this week between the Palma city council and the Official College of Industrial Engineers (COEIB). The study will centre on the former factory known as Can Ribas, which has been refurbished in recent months. The agreement was signed by deputy mayor José Manuel Sierra, who is head of Palma council's housing department, and Antoni Maria Sanmarti, the dean of the COEIB. It means that the COEIB will participate in the third phase of this initiative which was submitted by the council for the European Restoration Project, through the European initiative INETTEG IIIC. The aim of this project is to “study the industrial heritage of the early 20th century in Palma and, to be more precise, the former factory of Can Ribas, which is situated in La Soledad”. The Engineering College will be given a total budget of 35'000 euros to do the work. The council's proposal is in four phases. In the first phase, which will be done by historians, the industrial history of the La Soledad area will be studied. In the second phase, which will be done by architects, the operation and function of the old industrial building will be studied. In the third phase, which is the one covered by the aforementioned agreement, the industrial process for the manufacture of materials will be the subject studied. During this phase, an inventory will be made of all the machinery used and its elements. In addition to this the operation of the old Can Ribas factory will be studied and recorded. In the fourth phase, which will be done by architects, the possibility of putting old industrial buildings to new use will be studied and the findings recorded. Palma council will shortly be approving the definitive reform project for the area: the construction of 169 council houses (VPP), the rehabilitation of the old Can Ribas factory, the construction of a social and cultural centre and 12 business premises and the creation of 250 parking spaces.