The first phase of the western extension of the Helsinki metropolitan area subway line, the West Metro – in use since November 18, 2017 – connects Ruoholahti, Helsinki to Matinkylä, Espoo. The West Metro will service over 170,000 passengers per day. The objective that has been set for the architecture of the eight new stations along the first, and the five new stations along the second phase of the extension is to create distinctive, location-specific identities for them on both urban and interior scale. At the same time the metro will act as a link between the various urban centers of the City of Espoo and in a way create its new backbone.
The chocolate company Fazer is one of the best known Finnish brands with a strong heritage. In short, the new visitor center transforms the existing candy factory area into a destination for visitors.
Architect: Kimmo Lintula, Niko Sirola & Mikko Summanen Nina Vauhkonen, Sasu Marila, Matias Manninen, Tetsujiro Kyuma, Petri Ullakko, Matti Wäre, Tuuli Kanerva
Landscape Architect: MAISEMA-ARKKITEHTITOIMISTO NÄKYMÄ OY, Yrjö Ala-Heikkilä, Pia Kurki, Ana Torres Gomez
Exhibition Designer: ATELJE SOTAMAA, Kivi Sotamaa, Tuuli Sotamaa
Interior Designer: dSign Samuli Hintikka, Vertti Kivi
Structural Engineering: SS TERACON OY, Pasi Koivisto
Hvac Designer: INSINÖÖRITOIMISTO ÄYRÄVÄINEN OY, Esa Vehmaan-Kreula
Dipoli, the listed iconic and experimental student union building of Helsinki University of Technology designed by Raili and Reima Pietilä and completed in 1966 has gone through a complete renovation and gotten a new life as the main building of Aalto University. The building reopened for fall semester 2017.
Team: ALA partners Juho Grönholm, Antti Nousjoki, Janne Teräsvirta and Samuli Woolston with Toni Laurila, Pekka Sivula, Simo Nuojua, Lotta Kindberg, Tiina Liisa Juuti, Marlène Oberli-Räihä, Mirja SIllanpää and Sari Vesanen
Collaborators: Workspace (office space concept), Creadesign (service design), Kristo Vesikansa (conservation), Ramboll Finland (building services engineering), Palotekninen insinööritoimisto Markku Kauriala (fire safety), Vahanen Group (structural design), Tuuli Sotamaa (interior design), Helimaki Acoustics (acoustics design), Suurkeittiö-Insinööritoimisto Rita Pulli (kitchen design), NCC Building (main contractor)
Status: Completed, the building re-opened for fall semester 2017
Helsinki-based Lahdelma & Mahlamäki Architects have been given the green light to begin construction on a new facility which will bring all the offices of the City’s urban environment divisions under one roof. The new office complex will take a new approach to how Helsinki’s city planners, housing specialists and environmental designers tackle issues within the Finnish capital, replacing traditional work spaces with an activity-based work environment. The 41,000m2 new building will have its ground floor almost entirely open to the public, with customer service points, exhibition spaces and a restaurant. At the same time, the design of the rest of the building, primarily offices, puts a heavy emphasis on casual encounters between employees of different departments. Construction is due to begin in December 2017.
Tags: Finland, Helsinki Comments Off on Kaupunkiympäristötalo – A New Hub for Helsinki’s Urban Environment Departments in Finland by Lahdelma & Mahlamäki Architects
Showroom design, interior design and lighting event for professionals is organized second time in Helsinki Fair Centre 13.–15.9.2017. The event is collaboration between Helsinki Design Week and Habitare, the biggest interior design fair in Finland. We were asked to design exhibition architecture but we found the task very challenging as we always start from the site. The vast empty exhibition hall didn’t provide us with any starting points. We started thinking what the fair is all about. As all the information can be found in internet, what is the point of this kind of events? We concluded that the main point is the contact between exhibitors and visitors. This is why we focused on interaction between people instead of designing fancy physical exhibition structures.
A pyramidal roof culminating in a fully glazed nature observatory defines this wooden house built on a square footprint.
The owner of a beautiful plot stuck between a mountain forest and a lake in Finland wanted a house with a distinctive character that would offer the comfort of a contemporary lifestyle and, at the same time, establish a tight connection with the strong and beautiful natural features of the site.
A solution was found in a wooden building designed around a pure geometric shape, balancing clean contemporary lines, traditional materials and complex spatial solutions.
UPM, the world’s second biggest forest company, leads the integration of bio and forest industries into an innovation-driven, resource-efficient future.
The main spatial element of the interior is the atrium, which allows for communication and gives the building an integral part of its identity. Adjacent to the entrance is a high cone-shaped gallery which enables product and art exhibitions and other small-scale events. Conference centre on the ground floor swirls around the atrium – guests are received in the bright café area in the lofty atrium. All workspaces, management included, are open-plan. The layout of the office floors is dynamic and enables impromptu brainstorming and one-on-one meetings for informal testing of new ideas “in statu nascendi”.
Easton Helsinki, a 66,000m2 shopping centre by Lahdelma & Mahlamäki is the first phase in a larger urban plan and looks to celebrate the identity and culture of Helsinki’s eastern districts. In its architectural and commercial concepts the project idealistically and physically centres itself around food, bringing together local vendors and businesses at the heart of the shopping centre. However, the project also holds a rich production history – it has been as much about process as it has about the final result. Centralised BIM models have formed the core of the workflow and design process since day one, a request of the client Kesko. Whilst shopping centres are inherently complex projects, workflow on all levels, from the design desks of individual end-users to contractors on-site, was managed through a centralised model; whether it be involving the façade system or the environmental conditions of individual shops.
Villa Lumi (lumi = snow) is bordered from three sides by streets. The incoherent suburban environment doesn’t provide any interesting views or starting points for the architecture. This is why the building turns around a courtyard. The noise of traffic is blocked with a glazed pool wing. Terrace courtyard, opening towards the evening sun from the west, is a place of several activities for the family living in the villa.
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