The Ruhr Visitor Center offers a tourist information center and a media presentation of the Ruhr region. Visitors can learn about the sights in the immediate vicinity, as well as the tourist attractions of the entire Ruhr Metropolis. The coal washery at Shaft XII is the largest building in the surface facilities at Zollverein. During operating hours, up to 24.000 tons of raw coal were processed there daily. The mixture of coal and stone was sorted at various stations, among other things. This was done using water, for example, hence the term "coal washery."
