The first Océ Museum was realized on the Van Leeuwenhoekstraat on the Veegtes, the oldest planned industrial site in Venlo that took shape in the 1950s. The opening speech on the occasion of the official opening was given by the then Director of General Management, Mr Daan van der Grinten. In his speech, Mr Van der Grinten considered the importance of protecting the heritage, an initiative that had been started several years earlier in view of the then centenary celebration of the company.
He doubted the name “museum”. “The word museum,” says Daan van der Grinten, “originally means Temple of the Muses. Whether that is a correct indication of what we are going to open here today is doubtful. We are still looking for a more suitable name.” That search has yielded nothing until today
In his speech, Mr. Van der Grinten also said:
“It seems important for those who are interested in our company or who we want to inform about Océ that they not only get to hear a story about the development of the organization, but can also get a picture of it through concrete objects that mark this development …” and a little further: “As you could read in the invitation, the opening act will be performed by my father, Mr. Karel van der Grinten. I thought that he was indeed the most appropriate figure to perform this opening: he has to a large extent experienced the history of the objects on display in various meanings. It may sound like preaching for your own parish, it is, but it is nevertheless true.
May I invite Mr Karel van der Grinten to start his work of this afternoon?
The ‘work’ of former CEO Dr. Karel van der Grinten that day consisted of clocking in a special time card in the old stamp clock of the Hogeweg. With that he officially opened the Océ Museum, now a quarter of a century ago.
Dr. Karel van der Grinten inserts a card into an old time clock and thereby opens the Océ Museum.