Shanghai Submarine Museum breaks ground
The groundbreaking ceremony for the first phase of the Shanghai Submarine Museum (Huangpu Branch of the China Maritime Museum) was held on 7 September, along with unveiling of the adjoining educational park. In his speech, Shanzhou Shen, head of Huangpu district, highlighted the role of the project in contributing to the revitalisation of the public riverfront while paying homage to the rich industrial and maritime heritage of the district.
The Shanghai Submarine Museum is located at the former Jiangnan Shipyard No. 3 Dockyard on the Huangpu riverfront, with a total site area of ca. 12,600 sqm. PES-Architects winning design in the invited architectural competition in 2021 highlights the cultural and exhibition functions with a simple architectural form and modest scale that organically connects the submarine and riverbank.
The water feature on the floor of the dock presents a gradual undulating topography with a changing water level in reference to the historical appearance of the dockyard. A wide staircase will link the dockyard with the public pedestrian space along the river.
In the first project phase, expected to be completed by the end of the year, the restored submarine will be opened for public viewing. In the second phase, a museum building will be built across the dock as a new landmark on the iconic riverfront.
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Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre wins International Architecture Awards 2022
The Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre in Fujian, China, has been selected as a winner in the International Architecture Awards 2022 for the second year running. This year, the Strait Culture and Arts Centre was awarded in the Museums and cultural buildings category, following an award in 2021 in the Government buildings category.
Organised by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies, the prestigious International Architecture Awards are the world’s first and oldest annual global design awards programme. The awards recognize the most significant and inspirational buildings of the year and set a global standard for architectural achievement worldwide.
This year, 150 plus award-winning buildings and urban planning projects were selected from a shortlist of over 450 submissions across 48 countries. The distinguished awards jury included Alberto Alessi, Alessi SpA; Flavio Manzoni, Senior Vice President, Ferrari Design; Mauro Porcini, Chief Design Officer, PepsiCo., Inc.; and Damian Mycroft, Design Director, Coca-Cola.
The gala awards dinner and ceremony will be held near the Acropolis in Athens, Greece on September 9. The winning projects will be exhibited at Contemporary Space Athens from 9 to 25 September 2022 as "The City and the World", scheduled to travel in Europe through 2023. The projects will also be published as a catalogue for Global Design + Urbanism XXII —MORE— THE INTERNATIONAL ARCHITECTURE AWARDS 2022 Add Nine (New International Architecture 2022) edited by Christian Narkiewicz-Laine for Metropolitan Arts Press Ltd.
PES-Architects and chief designer Pekka Salminen proudly share the recognition together with our local partner China Construction Engineering Design Group Co., Ltd (CCEDG) and lead architect Xu Zongwu.
A full list of winning projects for 2022 can be viewed at www.chi-athenaeum.org, www.internationalarchitectureawards.com and www.europeanarch.eu.
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PES-Architects wins design competition for Ferry Terminal Turku
PES-Architects’ proposal Origami was selected as the winner in the international invited architecture competition for the new passenger terminal in the Port of Turku. A total of 18 design teams applied for the public procurement competition in autumn 2021, of which five teams were selected to participate on the basis of references: PES-Architects, JKMM Architects, ALA Architects, Helin & Co Architects with LPR-Architects, and Zaha Hadid Architects. Three teams, PES-Architects, JKMM Architects, and Zaha Hadid Architects with Kontukoski Architects, were selected for the final phase in an anonymous process.
PES-Architects’ design was unanimously selected for best fulfilling the competition goals in terms of functionality and fit in the environment and landscape of the evolving Linnanniemi area, by the historic Turku Castle. The jury, chaired by Erik Söderholm, Managing Director of Port of Turku Ltd, also praised the exceptional and expressive architecture of the proposal. Ferry cruises often provide a break from the everyday, and the striking appearance of the terminal building sets the passengers in the right mood for a sea voyage.
The 13,600-sqm terminal is designed for high efficiency and flexibility to serve two shipping lines in separate berths, while forming a distinctive new architectural element in the harbour district. The architecture is based on oblique triangular surfaces and a play with steel, glass and aluminium, delicately folded like a giant work of origami. The building’s sculptural lines and shimmering surfaces evoke maritime images of a silvery salmon or steel ship. The terminal also offers both arriving and departing travellers a vantage point to the surrounding city, its history and the seascape through tall glass walls and terraces.
“Being invited to this prestigious competition was a great honour for us. It´s a joy to start planning the new terminal in collaboration with the Port of Turku. Transport architecture serves users in everyday and business travel as well as on more special occasions and holidays, and the Ferry Terminal Turku project can be commended for investing in the high-quality design of the terminal,” says chief designer, PES-Architects partner Tuomas Silvennoinen, architect SAFA.
A further development phase will commence in late summer 2022 in collaboration with the client and other stakeholders. The goal is to have the new passenger terminal in use by early 2026.
The competition win is the third for PES-Architects in central Turku in recent years. We are currently in the design phase for the Turku Music Centre and are waiting for work to start on the Turku Railyard arena and urban development project.
World-renowned acoustician Eckhard Kahle selected as chief acoustics designer for the Turku Music Centre
The alliance project team has selected Akukon & Kahle Acoustics as acoustic designers for the Turku Music Centre. The acoustics design team will include the most experienced concert hall designers from Finnish Akukon and Belgian Kahle Acoustics. The chief acoustic designers are the world-renowned acoustician Eckhard Kahle and Henrik Möller, an expert in the acoustics and functionality of multipurpose halls. In addition, Tapio Lokki, acoustics researcher and professor at Aalto University, has been appointed as expert for the client, the City of Turku.
“PES-Architects has a long history of designing performance halls together with Eckhard Kahle’s firm. When compiling our team for the Music Centre competition, our thoughts naturally turned to Eckhard. A good acoustician takes into consideration the architect’s and users’ views, and this is precisely how our design project is proceeding,” says Tuomas Silvennoinen, chief designer of the Turku Music Centre at PES-Architects.
Past references of the internationally acclaimed Eckhard Kahle include the Philharmonie de Paris in France and the Stavanger Concert Hall in Norway. In Finland, Kahle is involved in the acoustic conversion of the new concert hall for Jyväskylä Sinfonia.
Trained as a musician, Kahle holds a PhD in acoustics and is one of the world’s most in-demand acoustics designers. Akukon is an expert in acoustics, noise abatement and audiovisual design services in Finland and the Baltic countries.
World-class acoustics for the Turku Music Centre
World-class acoustics is one of the key goals of the Turku Music Centre. Prior to appointing the acoustics designers, representatives of the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra discussed the acoustic targets and ideal soundscape with the acousticians and visited reference projects in Norway.
”We soon established that Kahle’s views are very similar to ours as regards the acoustics of the new Music Centre. We want the audience to be immersed in the music. I’m confident that our common goals will lead to an excellent outcome,” says Nikke Isomöttönen, Chief Executive of the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra.
Internationally significant music centre
The Turku Music Centre is set to be a major international music centre on the banks of the Aura River in Turku, combining world-class acoustics with outstanding functionality.
The building will feature two auditoriums: a 1,300-seat concert hall for acoustic orchestral music and a 300-seat multipurpose hall. In addition to housing the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, the centre will serve a variety of other forms of music.
The building will be built in the alliance model by the alliance team including the City of Turku as client, Hartela Länsi-Suomi Oy, PES-Architects Ltd, WSP Finland Oy, and Laidun-design Oy and the Akukon & Kahle Acoustics team as subcontractors. The aim is that construction could start in summer 2023.
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Construction phase of the Shanghai Submarine Museum kicked off with relocation of the submarine
Construction of the first phase of the Shanghai Submarine Museum will begin after the Chinese New Year. The project was kicked off this week with the relocation of the decommissioned submarine into the future museum site at the No. 3 Dockyard, former site of Jiangnan Shipyard on the Huangpu River in central Shanghai. The submarine was towed into place in a major operation involving a number of parties including the project team, government agencies and naval support.
Based on PES-Architects’ winning entry in the architecture competition arranged by the Shanghai Bund Investment Group Co. Ltd in 2021, the museum will be implemented in two phases. In the first phase, the dock pool will be repaired and a bridge-like, 500 sqm structure spanning the dock will be built to allow access to the submarine. In the second phase, the building will expand upwards with 3,000 sqm of exhibition and event spaces and a restaurant.
A branch of the China Maritime Museum, the new museum is part of the urban revitalisation of the Huangpu River’s west bank, where former industrial sites are being converted into cultural facilities, public parks and recreational sites linked by a green pedestrian passage.
Alliance agreement signed for Turku Music Centre
The alliance agreement to design and build the Turku Music Centre and the contract for the project planning phase was signed on Monday 10 January 2022 between the City of Turku and the Harmonia consortium, consisting of Hartela Länsi-Suomi Oy as contractor, PES-Architects as principal designer, and WSP Finland Oy. Harmonia’s proposal for the Music Centre was selected through a competitive tendering process in October 2021.
The new concert hall will be called the Turku Music Centre (Turun musiikkitalo) to reflect the open and versatile nature of its activities. In addition to acting as home for the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, the Music Centre will serve the entire Turku region as a venue for a wide range of high-class national and international events. Located on the Aura River, the Music Centre will form part of the cultural zone on the Turku riverfront and connect to the adjacent City Theatre.
PES-Architects has built a number of concert halls in China in recent years, and the design team is further strengthened by the lead designer of the Helsinki Music Centre, Marko Kivistö of Laidun-design.
The project will be implemented in the alliance model, which aims to achieve the best outcome for all parties through innovation, collaboration and efficiency. The key result areas defined by the client for the project include world-class acoustics, premium customer experience and an inspiring work environment, as well as a low carbon footprint and energy efficiency.
Construction is planned to begin in summer 2023. The plan amendment for the building is currently under preparation for decision-making by the City of Turku in early 2022. The project design development phase is also underway, with the project plan to be presented to the City Council in the autumn.
The drafts for the first phase of the competition will be submitted at the beginning of year and the final proposals in spring 2022. The winner will be announced by summer 2022, and the terminal is scheduled to open in early 2026.
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PES-Architects invited to join design competition for Turku passenger terminal
PES-Architects has been selected as one of five design teams to participate in the architectural competition for the new Turku passenger ferry terminal.
Nearly twenty architecture teams signed up for the public procurement competition through an open registration procedure. Five design teams were selected to participate based on their references. In addition to PES-Architects, the contenders include design team Helin & Co Architects and LPR-Architects, ALA Architects, and JKMM Architects from Finland, and Zaha Hadid Architects from the UK.
The terminal competition is part of the Ferry Terminal Turku project, which aims to upgrade the Turku passenger harbour into a maritime hub for modern, streamlined and safe vessel traffic. In addition to providing a smooth passenger experience for both of the ferry lines operating out of the port, the new terminal is expected to meet the high architectural standards required in the sensitive urban context near the historic Turku Castle.
“It’s an honour to participate in this important design competition,” says PES-Architects partner Tuomas Silvennoinen. “The harbour is a vital part of Turku and the whole area is currently undergoing a major transformation as the city centre expands. We’re excited to bring our extensive experience in terminal architecture and urban design to developing the best possible solution for this challenging project.”
“The Port of Turku is also to be commended for choosing to invest in the quality of architecture, for the long-term benefit of both ferry travellers and the city residents.“
The drafts for the first phase of the competition will be submitted at the beginning of year and the final proposals in spring 2022. The winner will be announced by summer 2022, and the terminal is scheduled to open in early 2026.
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RIL Award 2021 to the Helsinki Airport development programme
Finavia’s development programme at Helsinki Airport has received the prestigious RIL Award 2021. The award has been granted annually since 1972 by the Finnish Association of Civil Engineers (RIL) to a project that demonstrates outstanding and innovative Finnish civil engineering expertise and has a positive technological and social impact.
The winner of the RIL Award was chosen this year from among the three shortlisted projects by business leader Matti Alahuhta, D.Sc. (Tech). Grounds cited by Alahuhta for the award include the successful cooperation between all parties in the highly demanding project environment of an operating airport, and the wide-scale use of digital and virtual tools for construction, information modelling and data-driven decision-making. This approach also helped ensure the realisation of the aesthetic, functional, safety and economical goals of the programme.
Sustainability considerations were also highlighted: the non-Schengen areas of Helsinki Airport have been granted international BREAAM certification with the rating ‘excellent’.
According to Alahuhta, Helsinki Airport is an important window to Finland and Finnish culture. The development programme strengthens Helsinki Airport’s position as a leading European transit airport, which has a direct impact on business, the economy and access to Finland.
A large number of design and construction companies have been involved in the projects under the Helsinki Airport development programme over the years. PES-Architects acted as architectural and interior designer of the non-Schengen and long-haul area expansion over a period of six years, with the last phase completed in autumn 2021. The project scope comprises a total of 75,000 sqm in new terminal space and upgrades of existing border control and other service areas in Terminal 2.
“The award is greatly valued as a recognition of the effort and expertise our skilled team has put into this long project,” says Tuomas Silvennoinen, PES-Architects partner and chief designer of the long-haul area expansion. “The project has been exceptionally challenging but also highly inspiring and successful, thanks to good management, shared tools and excellent collaboration with the client, other stakeholders and all the professionals involved.”
The RIL Awards were presented at the House of the Estates in Helsinki on 23 November 2021 to Finavia and representatives of the main companies involved in the projects.
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PES-Architects selected to design the Central Health and Well-being Centre in Helsinki
PES-Architects has been selected through a public tendering process to design the new Health and Well-being Centre to be built in Kamppi in central Helsinki.
“We’ve worked on the project plan for the health centre together with the City of Helsinki from the earliest needs assessment phase starting in 2016, so we’re very happy to have also won the design commission for this important public building,” says PES-Architects partner Tuomas Silvennoinen.
“Our previous studies and deep familiarity with the requirements of the site and functions of the building make us well positioned to design a high-quality health centre for the future.”
The ca. 14,000 m2, eight-storey health and well-being centre will be a large centralised unit providing a full range of health and social services to residents of several central Helsinki districts. The building will incorporate the existing Kamppi metro station and ticket hall as well as commercial premises at ground level, creating an easily accessible, inviting service hub for Helsinki residents.
The project requires exceptionally careful planning and high architectural standards due to the sensitive urban location in a prominent site surrounded by several architecturally significant buildings, including the adjacent Sähkötalo (Electricity Building) designed by Alvar Aalto.
The design work is expected to begin in early November. Construction could start in 2022 at the earliest, with the building due for completion by 2026.
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PES-Architects wins competition to design the new Turku Concert Hall as part of alliance consortium Harmonia
The Turku City Council decided on 18 October to select alliance consortium Harmonia, led by construction company Hartela and PES-Architects, to design and build the new Turku Concert Hall following a two-phase negotiated tendering process. Three consortia were shortlisted for the second phase in December 2020. Particular emphasis in the decision was placed on architectural quality and the use of the site.
”The name of the consortium, Harmonia (harmony), reflects the goals of the design. In the original Greek, harmony means joining together. In music, it refers to the harmonious combination of contrasting elements. Similarly, the new concert hall is designed for diverse encounters at different levels: urban, artistic, functional and cultural,” explains PES-Architects partner Tuomas Silvennoinen. ”The architecture of the building serves as a platform to help foster a sense of community and enable new forms of activities and events.”
Harmony has also been sought in the relationship of the concert hall to its surroundings and the unique cultural landscape. The concert hall will be situated in a prominent location on Independence Square by the Aura River. In our vision, the building is not a solitary exclamation mark – instead, it will form part of a vibrant landmark of culture and art together with the adjacent Turku City Theatre and Wäinö Aaltonen Museum.
The building also has its own clear identity and distinctive character. In recognition of the importance of the Aura River to Turku´s landscape and identity, the form of the building resembles an undulating river bed. The vertical openings of the copper, glass and wood façade allow varying views of the river from within and make the building open and inviting from outside.
The concert hall will feature world-class acoustics in a classic shoebox auditorium that envelops the audience and orchestra in music. The multifunctional hall is designed to flexibly accommodate a variety of uses.
The building will leave as much as possible of the existing square open to retain views to the river from the theatre and the City administration building. The square between the concert hall and theatre will be a functional space for activities, allowing new forms of artistic collaboration. To compensate for the loss of the existing park, the building will feature rooftop gardens and terraces.
The project will now proceed according to the alliance model to a further development stage in partnership with the City.
The aim is that the 13,600 sqm concert hall would be completed by the end of 2025.
PES-ARCHITECTS' TEAM:
Tuomas Silvennoinen (chief designer)
Marko Kivistö (Laidun Oy)
Martin Lukasczyk (project manager)
Willem Barendregt
Martin Genet
Hannes Halttunen
Anniina Ikäheimo
Mikko Karppanen
Kai Lindvall
Satu Mattila
Toivo Moustgaard
Yan Peng
Jarkko Salminen
Yizhou Zhao
CONSORTIUM HARMONIA:
Hartela Länsi-Suomi Oy
WSP Finland Oy
PES-Architects Ltd
Laidun-design Oy
ACOUSTICS CONSULTANTS:
Akukon Oy and Kahle Acoustics
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International Architecture Award for Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre
The Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre has been selected as a winner in the 2021 International Architecture Awards. Organised by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies, the International Architecture Awards are the oldest and most prestigious international building awards programme that honours new and cutting-edge design worldwide.
This year, the Museum received a record number of projects for new buildings, landscape architecture, and urban planning from the most important firms practicing globally. An international jury composed of leading architects, designers, critics, and educators worked remotely to select over 130 winning projects from a shortlist of over 450 projects.
A special exhibition to showcase the winning projects, “The City and the World”, will run at The Contemporary Space Athens from 10 September to 11 October 2021. All buildings and urban planning projects selected this year are also published in a special issue of Global Design + Urbanism XXI. “New International Architecture 2021.”
A full list of winning projects for 2021 can be viewed at www.chi-athenaeum.org, www.internationalarchitectureawards.com and and www.europeanarch.eu.
Since its opening at the end of 2018, the Strait Culture and Art Centre has received a number of major awards for its architecture, interior design and construction, including the highest awards of the Architectural Society of China Awards in the categories architecture, interior and curtain wall/façade, as well as the highest steel structure award in China and in Finland (all these together with local partner CCEDG.
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PES-Architects wins design competition for Shanghai Submarine Museum
PES-Architects has won the invited international architecture competition for the Shanghai Submarine Museum on the Huangpu riverfront in Shanghai, China.
The new museum, administratively part of the China Maritime Museum in Shanghai, will occupy a prominent position in a dock of the former Jiangnan Shipyard, more recently part of the 2010 Shanghai World Expo site. The west bank of the Huangpu River in central Shanghai is currently undergoing a major urban transformation with old industrial docks and sites being converted into cultural venues, public parks and recreational sites.
”We’re thrilled to be implementing a project in our Chinese home town of Shanghai again. The new museum, while relatively small in size, plays an important role in the revitalisation of this historic area on the iconic Huangpu River,” says Tuomas Silvennoinen, partner at PES-Architects.
The museum will initially showcase a decommissioned submarine, later to be expanded with flexible exhibition/event spaces and a restaurant.
In PES-Architects’ concept, the museum is placed as a bridge on top of the submarine and across the dock pool, allowing for continuous flow across the site while leaving most of the dock intact. A low, simple structure of 500 m2 in the first phase, set to be completed in the first quarter of 2022, the building will grow upwards by 3,000 m2 in the second phase (2023).
The building forms a symbiosis with the submarine and hovers over the dock as a mysterious, intriguing object with fantastic views towards the river, the dock and the submarine. The reflective mirror facade simultaneously amplifies its context and disappears, attracting attention yet respecting its environment. Glass, steel and wood form an elegant contrast to the rough textures of the museum dock.
The dock floor has a gradually undulating topography that can be partially filled with water to form pools of various sizes, changing the outlook and function of the area.
“This was our second competition win in China this year, soon after the Nanchang Poly Grand Theatre. In both cases, we were invited to participate by major players in the cultural or construction sector who were familiar with our track record of demanding architectural projects completed with a high level of quality. While we’ve done well in many competitions, actually securing a win and commission is no easy task for a relatively small Nordic office. It’s great to see our long-term efforts in China paying off,” says Tuomas Silvennoinen.
The competition was organised as a two-phase invited tendering procedure by Shanghai Bund Investment Group Co. Ltd (BIG), with a total of seven participating design practices. The jury commended PES-Architects’ proposal for its considered relationship with its surroundings, retaining the feel of the industrial dock and showcasing the submarine, yet creating an artistic architectural image towards the Huangpu River. The solution for the two construction phases was also considered successful.
PES-Architects’ design team: Tuomas Silvennoinen (chief architect), Jyri Eskola, Ziyang Xu, Yueyang Li, Linli Lai, Jian Dou, Jianqiang Lin, Jie Tang, Xiaojing Guan
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Marienkirche Concert Hall celebrates its 20th anniversary
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Marienkirche Concert Hall in Neubrandenburg, Germany. The anniversary was marked with a series of summer concerts, culminating in a jubilee concert on 13 July 2021 by the Neubrandenburger Philharmonie, which simultaneously celebrated its 70th anniversary.
The Marienkirche Concert Hall, Konzertkirche, is a unique modern music venue encased within the walls of a late 13th century North German Brick Gothic church. The badly damaged church was renovated in the 1980s–1990s and transformed into a concert hall at the turn of the millennium based on PES-Architects’ winning entry in the invited architectural competition arranged in 1996.
“A concert hall should give the audience a visual as well as acoustic experience. The sum of these is what creates the spirit and atmosphere of the music experience,” says Professor Pekka Salminen, PES-Architects founding partner and chief architect of the concert hall.
In the Marienkirche, this spirit is characterised by the symbiosis and juxtaposition of old and new. The “house-within-a-house” solution allows the protected exterior walls to remain practically intact, providing a striking background to the steel, glass and concrete structures and surfaces of the auditorium and foyer.
“It was a great joy to be able to attend the jubilee concert in Neubrandenburg. I’ve visited Marienkirche many times over the years, and it’s been very satisfying to see how important the Konzertkirche is to the community“ says Pekka Salminen.
“Marienkirche is one of our office’s major projects, paving the way for our international activities and serving as an important reference when we later entered the Chinese performance venue market. Personally, I consider it one of my main architectural works, where I could most comprehensively realise my architectural vision. The whole design and building process together with the City of Neubrandenburg and special consultants was exceptionally close and successful.”
After the completion of the Marienkirche Concert Hall in 2001, Pekka Salminen was also involved in the design of the organ that was built and installed in the hall by Klais Orgelbau in 2017.
The Marienkirche Concert Hall has received several major awards and recognitions, including the German Concrete Architecture Prize, German Architecture Prize, Architecture Prize of the state of the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Finnish Concrete Architecture Prize, and nomination for the EU Mies van der Rohe Award.
News feature and interview with Pekka Salminen in Nordmagazin
PES-Architects part of design team for Helsinki South Harbour design competition
PES-Architects is the architectural designer in one of 11 Finnish and international design groups approved by the City of Helsinki to participate in the competition for the development and implementation of the Makasiiniranta area in South Harbour, Helsinki. The other members of the consortium are HGR Property Partners, VSU landscape designers and Sweco.
The two-phase Makasiiniranta quality and concept competition seeks to find a partner for the City to design and realise a particularly challenging and high-quality construction project along the western shore of the South Harbour bay. The area will be developed into an accessible urban space forming part of the pedestrian city centre and the seaside trail around the shores of Helsinki, and is also planned to house the new Architecture and Design Museum along with commercial construction.
“Makasiiniranta is a uniquely sensitive and demanding location in the heart of Helsinki on the historic waterfront, and we’re honoured and inspired to propose solutions for transforming this currently underused area into a vibrant, attractive and functional urban environment for Helsinki residents and visitors alike,“ says PES-Architects partner Tuomas Silvennoinen.
The anonymous proposals will be put on public display for commenting following the end of the first phase of the competition in December this year. The feedback will be used in the evaluation and selection of entries for the second phase of the competition starting in spring 2022, with more detailed proposals to be provided by the shortlisted groups by the end of June 2022. The winning group will be announced in autumn 2022 and will continue planning the area in partnership with the City.
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PES-Architects shortlisted in Wumart South Technology head office competition in Shenzhen
PES-Architects is one of six design practices to be shortlisted for the second phase of the International Architectural Design Competition for the Head Office Project of Wumart South Technology in Shenzhen, China.
As one of the largest and earliest modern circulation enterprises in China, Wumart South Technology Co., Ltd is a key enterprise in Futian District, Shenzhen, China. The Head Office Project of Wumart South Technology Co., Ltd will be located in Futian Central District, at the core of Shenzhen, a comprehensive service centre integrating administration, culture, information, international exhibition and financial business. The Head Office will have a floor area of some 90,000 m2, with a height of 210-220 metres.
A total of 58 applicants submitted application documents and design proposals in the open tender phase. After review and several rounds of voting, the prequalification committee, composed of five experts and two sponsor representatives, selected six design agencies (without ranking) and a further two agencies (with ranking) for the second phase of the competition.
Shortlisted applicants (without ranking):
PES-Architects
HPP
CDDI
Carlo Ratti Associati
Archilier LLC
SZAD
Alternative applicants (with ranking):
Gensler Architecture Design Firm (Shanghai) Co., Ltd.
Ten Design Group Limited
The results of the proposal evaluations will be released at the end of June 2021.
Competition site
PES-Architects wins competition for Nanchang Poly Grand Theatre
PES-Architects has won the invited international architectural competition for the Nanchang Poly Grand Theatre, following an intense competition process beginning in November 2020.
Situated by the beautiful Jiulong Lake, Nanchang Poly Grand Theatre forms a unique relationship with its environment. The project creates a ‘cultural and commercial campus’, a series of communal living rooms providing the framework for the creation of intellectual, economic and social value. Borrowing its typological idea from traditional Chinese villages, the programme is broken down into three masses: a grand theatre/opera hall, multifunctional theatre and art education and exhibition space, connected by a central passage. The form of the loosely grouped masses resembles three fish circling in a pond, allowing the free flow of people around them.
The competition was organised by the Poly Group, China’s leading theatre management company.
PES-Architects’ design team: Tuomas Silvennoinen (chief architect), Jyri Eskola, Lai Linli, Willem Barendregt, Guan Xiaojing, Dou Jian, Lin Jianqiang, Li Yueyang, Zhou Hanxiao, Xu Ziyang, Juho Jääskeläinen
Video presentation
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New seating areas designed for West Terminal 2
PES-Architects has designed a set of multifunctional seating islands for the comfort of passengers departing from West Terminal 2, Port of Helsinki. Completed in 2017, West Terminal 2 serves one of the busiest ferry connections in Europe on the Helsinki-Tallinn route. The spacious departure lounge was initially designed to be as open as possible for safety and efficiency, but based on traveller feedback, additional seating was designed in keeping with the spirit and fine detailing of the timber-ceilinged hall.
The new seating areas take the form of three islands, suitable for casual lounging, with a magnificent view of the sea through the lobby's high glass walls. The islands are made up of overlapping round wood elements, the top ones leather-clad in black or grey, reminiscent of the skerries dotting the Finnish archipelago. The islands are also equipped with charging outlets for mobile devices. The central seating island can be disassembled for use as a small stage or stand for pop-up exhibitions.
The seats were designed by our interior design team led by Kai Lindvall.
Read more about West Terminal 2
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PES-Architects' design selected for City of Vantaa’s new hybrid office building
PES-Architects’ proposal “Koralli” was selected for the new hybrid building complex to be built in central Tikkurila for the City of Vantaa. PES-Architects is the principal designer in the project, which will be implemented as a turnkey project by Lehto Tilat Oy, a subsidiary of Lehto Group. We’re responsible for the overall architectural design as well as workplace environment design.
The unique hybrid complex will be part of the vibrant new heart of Vantaa, containing a mixed-use office building for VTK Kiinteistöt Oy (a real estate company owned by the City of Vantaa) with commercial premises on the ground floor and three floors of offices and other premises for the City’s use, as well as an underground car park. These will be topped by three four-storey blocks of flats for Lehto. The gross area of the office building is about 23,000 m² and the floor area of the residential component is about 6,000 m².
The name “Koralli” (coral) refers to the versatile and flexible form and functions of the complex. The building mass is divided into smaller blocks like a partly open, partly closed chest of drawers, forming green terraces and natural overhangs to shield the offices from the sun. The building steps down towards the City Hall, creating a human-scale square in a continuation of the existing urban squares, integrating into and interacting with the surrounding urban environment.
The building’s design allows for great flexibility and adaptability. The aim is create a modern and functional work environment for the City and encourage encounters between the building’s users and visitors through shared, multipurpose spaces.
The carbon footprint of the complex is planned to be up to 55% lower than in an average new build. The highest green building certification LEED Platinum will be sought.
The builder-designer team for the project was selected through a public procurement negotiated procedure.
Steel Structure of the Year 2020 award to Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre
The Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre has been granted the 2020 Steel Structure of the Year award by the Finnish Constructional Steelwork Association. The 153,000 m2 Strait Culture and Art Centre was completed in Fuzhou, China in 2018 based on PES-Architects’ winning proposal in an invited competition in 2014. The cultural complex comprises five separate buildings – an opera house, concert hall, multi-functional theatre, art exhibition hall and cinema centre – linked by curved galleries following the form of the facades.
The jury particularly commended the insightful use of steel structures, which was the aspect of the project where Finnish specialist design was the most critical for a successful outcome. The curved interior galleries feature tall glazed walls shaded by a double facade formed of ceramic louvres, supported by a complex steel structure. The different materials used in the project – steel, concrete, glass, and local ceramics and bamboo – form a unified whole.
The design was achieved through parametric modelling and close collaboration between the different design teams, with Matti Haaramo of Vahanen Group as PES-Architects’ subconsultant for the steel structural design.
“The award is a valuable recognition of our long-term work in China, which we also see as the export of Finnish expertise in architectural design and structural engineering, among other specialist fields. I am particularly happy to share the award with Matti Haaramo, who has been my trusted structural engineering consultant in all the international projects I have designed in the last 25 years, including several in China,” says Professor Pekka Salminen, PES-Architects founding partner and chief designer of the Strait Culture and Art Centre.
“Big thanks also go to our design teams in Helsinki and Shanghai – it takes a highly skilled and seasoned team to successfully pull through such a large and demanding project in a very tight schedule.”
The Finnish Steel Structure of the Year award (Vuoden teräsrakenne) is a prestigious recognition granted annually to a project that combines high-quality architectural design with the particularly innovative and skilful use of steel. The selection is made by an independent jury. The award was bestowed to Pekka Salminen and Matti Haaramo on 24 November 2020 at the annual Constructional Steelwork Day in Helsinki.
In 2019, the Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre received the equivalent China Steel Structure Gold Award of the China Steel Construction Society.
"The award was bestowed to Pekka Salminen and Matti Haaramo on 24 November 2020 at the annual Constructional Steelwork Day in Helsinki. The award also goes to the main contractor China State Construction Engineering Co. Ltd, steel structure contractor Jiangsu Huning Steel Mechanism Co. Ltd, and the client, Fuzhou New Town Development Investment Group Co., Ltd. Our local partner was CCEDGC Co. Ltd./Xu Zongwu."
Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre selected for the Finnish Architecture – Biennial Review 2020
The Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre has been selected for the Finnish Architecture – Biennial Review 2020. The Biennial Review presents top achievements in contemporary Finnish architecture in the form of an exhibition organised every two years. This year’s Biennial Review selection includes 15 projects characterised by creative and high-quality architecture, a well thought-out relationship with the surroundings, functionality and ecological and sustainable criteria.
PES-Architects' Strait Culture and Art Centre, completed in Fuzhou, China in 2018, is the only project in the review selection to be located outside of Finland. The 153,000 sqm complex on the Minjiang River consists of five petal-shaped venues – an opera house, concert hall, multi-functional theatre, art exhibition hall and cinema centre – linked by a cultural concourse and large roof terrace. Ceramic is used as the project’s main material due to its cultural and historical significance.
The Finnish Architecture – Biennial Review is organised jointly by the Museum of Finnish Architecture, the Finnish Association of Architects SAFA and the Alvar Aalto Foundation. The review exhibition will be open at the Museum of Finnish Architecture from 4 September 2020 to 28 February 2021 and is accompanied by a publication.
PES-Architects wins Architizer A+Award for West Terminal 2
West Terminal 2
West Terminal 2 serves the fast ferry traffic across the Gulf of Finland on the Helsinki-Tallinn route, one of the busiest in Europe. Several million passengers a year pass through the terminal, which was designed for maximum efficiency, safety and comfort. The spacious departure lounge is characterised by tall glass walls towards the sea and a timber ceiling rising up to a height of nine metres.
Architizer is the world’s leading online platform for architecture and building-products. The Architizer A+Awards is the largest awards program focused on promoting and celebrating the year’s best architecture and products, with over 5,000 entries from 100+ countries this year.
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PES-Architects joins Architects Declare Finland
PES-Architects is proud to be one of the 17 founding signatories of Architects Declare Finland, the Finnish chapter of the global 'Architects Declare Climate and Biodiversity Emergency'. The twin crises of climate breakdown and biodiversity loss are the most serious issue of our time. Buildings and construction play a major part, accounting for nearly 40% of energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions while also having a significant impact on our natural habitats.
For everyone working in the construction industry, meeting the needs of our society without breaching the earth’s ecological boundaries will demand a paradigm shift in our behaviour. Together with our clients, we will need to commission and design buildings, cities and infrastructures as indivisible components of a larger, constantly regenerating and self-sustaining system. We are committing to strengthen our working practices to create architecture and urbanism that has a more positive impact on the world around us.
The Finnish Architects Declare online launch event was held on 12 June 2020. Further joint and individual actions of the studios involved will follow later this year.
Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre a Platinum Winner in the Outstanding Property Awards London (OPAL)
The Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre has been awarded as a Platinum Winner in the Outstanding Property Awards London (OPAL) 2019 in the Architectural Design category.
OPAL seeks the best Architecture, Interior Design and Property Development projects from around the world, celebrating and honouring diverse exceptional projects globally. According to OPAL co-founder Jesper Thomsen, the objective of the OPAL Awards is to reveal projects that are not only highly creative but show useful function, provide better a living experience for the users and meet the clients’ expectations.
Projects were anonymously peer-reviewed by the distinguished OPAL jury panel comprised of international industry experts, rating each project according to its individual merits based on creativity, form and function. The final winners were chosen based on the overall score of all the Jury votes.
PES-Architects invited to competition for wooden office and hotel building on Helsinki waterfront
PES-Architects has been invited to participate in the architectural competition for the new Stora Enso headqurters in Helsinki in a property owned by Varma pension company. A total of six internationally established architectural firms with experience in wood construction were invited to take part from Finland, the other Nordic countries and Japan.
The competition involves the design of an office and hotel building in a valuable waterfront location in Katajanokka, in the heart of Helsinki, a short distance from the Market Square, City Hall and Presidential Palace. The objective is to create high-quality and sustainable new premises for Stora Enso as well as other businesses and service providers, including a hotel. The outdoor premises will extend the public shoreline a shared urban space for residents and visitors.
"We're honoured and excited to participate in this competition. It's a unique opportunity to design a future-looking business property on a prime historic waterfront location in our home city of Helsinki," says Tuomas Silvennoinen, Design Director at PES-Architects.
The building is to be mainly built of wood, using Stora Enso’s new wood-structure system, with ambitious sustainability goals including carbon neutrality and LEED Platinum certification. The amount of lettable space will be approximately 16,000 square metres in total.
The competition is arranged according to the rules of the Finnish Association of Architects SAFA, with a jury including representatives from Varma, Stora Enso, SAFA and the City of Helsinki. The competition entries will be published in May 2020 and the result will be announced in late June.
PES-Architects receives shared third prize in Uusi Kansallinen architecture competition
PES-Architects received shared third prize in the Uusi Kansallinen architecture competition for an Annex to the National Museum of Finland in Helsinki.
The prize was awarded to our entry Kolme pihaa (”three courtyards”). Our design seeks to harmonise the structure and use of the existing exterior spaces of the National Museum. The subtle glass parabola-shaped pavilion frames three distinctive courtyards around the main building, underlining their individual identities.
In its assessment, the jury described the shaping of the building as confident and stylish. The entry introduces a new, sensitive architectural concept alongside the National Museum. The wing-like, light building mass outlines the courtyard areas with a sophisticated touch and enables the courtyard park to be used in multiple and flexible ways.
Uusi Kansallinen (the ”New National”) was a two-stage, open ideas architecture competition for the design of an Annex to the National Museum of Finland in Helsinki. The competition was jointly organized by the Finnish Heritage Agency, the National Museum of Finland and Senate Properties. A total of 185 entries were submitted, out of which five finalists were chosen for further development.
PES-Architects’ proposal was designed by Pekka Salminen, Jyri Eskola and Jaewoo Chon together with Inaki Zuazo, Jianqiang Lin and Richard Leung.
PES-Architects receives shared third prize in Uusi Kansallinen architecture competition
PES-Architects received shared third prize in the Uusi Kansallinen architecture competition for an Annex to the National Museum of Finland in Helsinki.
The prize was awarded to our entry Kolme pihaa (”three courtyards”). Our design seeks to harmonise the structure and use of the existing exterior spaces of the National Museum. The subtle glass parabola-shaped pavilion frames three distinctive courtyards around the main building, underlining their individual identities.
In its assessment, the jury described the shaping of the building as confident and stylish. The entry introduces a new, sensitive architectural concept alongside the National Museum. The wing-like, light building mass outlines the courtyard areas with a sophisticated touch and enables the courtyard park to be used in multiple and flexible ways.
Uusi Kansallinen (the ”New National”) was a two-stage, open ideas architecture competition for the design of an Annex to the National Museum of Finland in Helsinki. The competition was jointly organized by the Finnish Heritage Agency, the National Museum of Finland and Senate Properties. A total of 185 entries were submitted, out of which five finalists were chosen for further development.
PES-Architects’ proposal was designed by Pekka Salminen, Jyri Eskola and Jaewoo Chon together with Inaki Zuazo, Jianqiang Lin and Richard Leung.
Pekka Salminen awarded with the Bene Merentibus Medal by the Association of Polish Architects
Architect, Professor Pekka Salminen, founding partner of PES-Architects, was awarded the Bene Merentibus Medal by the Association of Polish Architects (SARP) on 29 November 2019 in Warsaw. The Medal was presented in connection with SARP’s annual gala by Mariusz Ścisło, President of SARP.
Pekka Salminen received the prestigious Bene Merentibus Medal for his merits in European and world architecture as well as support for the development and promotion of Polish architecture, including many years of cooperation with the Association of Polish Architects.
Pekka Salminen is recognized for his work on complex public and cultural buildings in Finland and abroad. Salminen has had an international approach to architecture from the start, actively seeking collaboration with foreign architects and participating in international competitions and architectural events.
“I am deeply honoured to receive this distinction from the Association of Polish Architects,” says Pekka Salminen. “Poland could be called my first ‘architectural home country’ outside Finland. The international architectural collaboration that began for me in Poland later continued to expand to Germany, Croatia and, most recently, China.”
In all these countries, Pekka Salminen and his office have established local offices and collaboration and promoted their vision of the basic characteristics of Finnish architecture: user orientation, reasonableness, affinity with nature and sustainability. These systematic efforts have resulted in Pekka Salminen’s main works abroad: the Marienkirche concert church in Neubrandenburg, Germany, and the Wuxi Grand Theatre and Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre (SCAC ) in China.
Pekka Salminen’s ties to Poland date back to 1978, when his team participated in the Warsaw Confrontations competition. At this time, he met awarded Polish architect Romuald Loegler, who would become a lifelong collaborator and personal friend. A major joint project was the invited competition for the Kronprinzenbrücke memorial bridge for the reunification of Germany in Berlin in 1991, where they won third prize. They have continued to work on competitions together and are planning a joint exhibition in 2020.
As Marta A. Urbańska, Plenipotentiary of the SARP Main Board for Cultural Heritage, noted in her laudatory speech, Salminen’s role was particularly significant for Polish architecture in the 1980s in a country then behind the Iron Curtain, when his professional connections and standing helped Polish architects to establish links to the world. Salminen also sponsored or employed numerous young Polish architects and students during their studies or internships in Finland.
Salminen’s activities in Poland have been many. He acted as juror of the International Biennale of Architecture in Krakow soon after its establishment, contributing significantly to the promotion of the event. He has co-organised a sports architecture workshop, served in the competition jury for the Museum of Architecture extension in Wrocław, and lectured at events including the BUDMA International Construction and Architecture Fair.
The SARP Bene Merentibus Medal was established by the Association of Polish Architects in 1996 as a recognition to persons or institutions particularly distinguished for services to Polish architecture in a broad sense. The recipients – which have included names such as architectural historian and critic Joseph Rykwert, film director Andrzej Wajda and composer and conductor Krzysztof Penderecki – represent a wide range of cultural and social spheres. Pekka Salminen is one of the few non-Polish recipients of the distinction.
In connection with the visit, Pekka Salminen gave a public lecture entitled “The Art of Material” on 28 November at the SARP exhibition pavilion in Zamoyski Palace, Warsaw.
PES-Architects awarded with WIN and WAN Awards for the architecture and interior design of Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre
PES-Architects has won the Gold Award for the Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre (SCAC) in the World Interiors News WIN Awards 2019 category for Cinemas, Theatres and Music Venues. The opera hall received a Bronze Award and the concert hall was a finalist in the Cultural Venues Category.
A Silver Award was received in the World Architecture News WAN Awards 2019 in the Façade category, rounded off with a Bronze in the Waterfront category.
The awards were announced at the WIN WAN Live event in London on 24 October.
“We’re delighted to receive these awards as a recognition for our achievement in creating a cultural centre that can be used widely for different purposes throughout the day," says Professor Pekka Salminen, chief designer of the project. "We also put great effort into using a historically and culturally significant Chinese material, ceramic, as extensively as possible on both exterior and interior surfaces.”
The complex houses an opera house, concert hall, multifunctional theatre, cinema centre and exhibition hall located in separate, petal-shaped buildings. A central Concourse Lobby, open all day, connects the venues, providing for flexible use of the public spaces and promoting the growth of local art production.
The opera and concert halls are clad with ornamental ceramic tiles designed together with Taiwanese ceramic artist Samuel Hsuan-yu Shih and installed to meet the highest acoustic requirements. Another traditional Chinese material, bamboo, is also used extensively throughout.
The five double-curved main façades are made of 42,250 lens-shaped ceramic louvres, maximizing the shading capacity of the façade and creating a translucent “jasmine white” skin for the building. After dark, the interior bamboo wall creates a deep secondary façade layer behind the white ceramic screen.
Full list of awards:
www.worldinteriorsnewsawards.com/winners-2019/
www.wanawards.com/results-2019/
Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre shortlisted for several architecture and interior design awards
The Strait Culture and Art Centre (SCAC), located in Fuzhou, China, has been shortlisted for the World Architecture News WAN Awards 2019, the World Interiors News WIN Awards 2019, and the Finnish Metal Facade of the Year award.
The SCAC is shortlisted in two categories for the World Architecture News WAN Awards: 'Facade' and 'Waterfront'. The World Interiors News has shortlisted the SCAC for the WIN Awards in the 'Cinemas, theatres and music venues’ category, and the opera and concert halls are both separately shortlisted in the 'Cultural venues' category.
The WIN and WAN Awards winners will be announced at the WIN WAN Live event in London in October.
In addition, the SCAC was nominated as a finalist for Metal Facade of the Year (Vuoden Metallijulkisivu). This is a newly established prize awarded by the Finnish sheet metal industry to pay tribute to innovation and sustainable constructions with focus on metal facades and roofs. The award ceremony will take place in September at the Plootu19 architecture event as part of Helsinki Design Week.
"We're particularly pleased that the Strait Culture and Art Centre is being recognised for its interiors, facades and waterfront location," says Professor Pekka Salminen, founding partner of PES-Architects and chief designer of the project. "The SCAC will be a focal point of the developing Mawei New Town district, and the cultural centre and its gardens open onto the Minjiang River, providing the community with a public riverside park for recreation even outside events.
"We also put great effort into using a historically and culturally significant Chinese material, ceramic, as extensively as possible on both the exterior and interiors of the buildings. The facades are clad with white ceramic tiles and louvres, and the opera and concert halls are clad with ornamental ceramic tiles custom-designed and installed to meet the highest acoustic requirements."
The curved, sloping roofs of the buildings are of prepatinated zinc. They are seen to form an equal part of the facades and were designed with as great attention to detail to fit into the overall architecture.
About the awards:
www.wanawards.com www.worldinteriorsnewsawards.com www.plootu19.fi
Architizer A+ Awards 2019 Special Mentions to Strait Culture and Art Centre and Icon Yunduan Tower
Two of our projects in China have been awarded with a Special Mention in the Architizer A+ Awards 2019: the Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre
in the Cultural-Hall / Theater category and the Icon Yunduan Tower in the Commercial-Office - High Rise (16+ Floors) category.
The Architizer A+Awards is the largest awards program focused on promoting and celebrating the year’s best architecture and products. In recognition of the exceptional quality of submissions received, the jury has acknowledged outstanding entries as Special Mentions, alongside the Finalists and Winners. Out of thousands of entries received from over 100 countries, the Special Mention distinction is awarded to work that exhibits remarkable achievement and scored in the top 5% of entrants.
You can view all the Finalists and Special Mentions at https://awards.architizer.com/finalists/finalists-2019/
Asia Pacific Property Award for Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre
The Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre was recognised with the Five-Star award as Best Public Service Architecture in China at the 2019-20 Asia Pacific Property Awards held in Bangkok. The project will go on to compete against international winners from other regions for the 'World's Best' title at the end of the year.
The Asia Pacific Property Awards are part of the long-established International Property Awards which celebrate the highest levels of achievement by companies operating in all sectors of the property and real estate industry. The award nominees were judged by an independent panel of over 80 industry experts, with judging focused on design, quality, service, innovation, originality, and commitment to sustainability. The Asia Pacific Property Awards are the largest, most prestigious, and widely recognised programme throughout the regions.
Next phase of Helsinki Airport expansion opens: first part of West Pier, new bus station
The latest phase of the Helsinki Airport long-haul terminal expansion has been completed with the opening of the first part of West Pier. The extension features 13,000 square metres of additional space with five new gates for wide-body aircraft, restaurants and a premium lounge. The West Pier continues the design of the previously completed South Pier and Aukio expansions with high, open spaces, steel structures and glass walls. Departing and arriving passenger flows are separated onto different levels, with moving walkways for added convenience.
The theme of Finnish nature continues in custom-designed wood details and furnishing. Wall surfaces are decorated with nine-metre-tall wooden reliefs made from Finnish birch. “The three-dimensional surfaces convey the mood of fluttering foliage and traditional wood shingle roofs,” explains chief designer Tuomas Silvennoinen. Large luminaires made from translucent plywood hang from the ceiling in undulating cloud-like forms, and even the charging stations for mobile devices are shaped into trees. The fixed furniture and luminaires are designed by Kai Lindvall of our interior design team.
The second phase of the West Pier, including expanded baggage handling facilities, will be completed at the end of the year.
A new bus station has also been opened in front of Terminal 2 with bus platforms and a waiting area for invalid taxis. An escalator will be completed by the end of June to provide easy access from the bus station directly to the Terminal 2 check-in level.
Tuomas Silvennoinen named Glass Builder of the Year 2019
PES-Architects partner and Design Director Tuomas Silvennoinen has been awarded as Glass Builder of the Year 2019 by the Finnish Flat Glass Association for his versatile use of glass in architecture throughout his career. According to the jury, Tuomas Silvennoinen has made an important contribution to the use of glass in architecture by designing a range of prominent buildings where glass structures play a key role on both facades and in interiors.
Silvennoinen works in close collaboration with industry experts to ensure the functionality of the glass structures for each individual project, including considerations such as noise insulation, solar protection and safety.
The jury cites West Terminal 2 in the Port of Helsinki (2017) as an excellent example of glass construction, where the design combines a sense of openness and light to create a pleasant passenger experience. Silvennoinen’s main international work, the Icon Yunduan Tower (2017) in Chengdu, China, also features wide glass facades. The same high quality and large-scale use of glass continues in the ongoing non-Schengen expansion of Helsinki Airport, where the award ceremony was held at the recently completed Aukio plaza.
“I’m grateful and honoured to receive the Glass Builder award. The value of using glass is obvious here at the airport: it allows passengers a view outdoors and to the runway, as well as making it easy and safe for them to navigate inside the terminal,” says Tuomas Silvennoinen.
The Finnish Flat Glass Association bestows the Glass Builder of the Year award in alternate years with the Glass Structure award to honour individuals and buildings that promote excellence in glass construction.
New central plaza Aukio opens at Helsinki Airport for long-haul passengers
The heart of Helsinki Airport’s terminal expansion for non-Schengen and long-haul flights, called Aukio (plaza), opened this week. The new area is located at the intersection of the current terminal and the new gate area extensions, the South Pier (completed in 2017) and the West Pier (to be completed in phases this year). A particular focus is on the needs of transit passengers on flights between Europe and Asia.
Aukio will give arriving and transit passengers their first or even only impression of Finland: state-of-the-art technology and an experience of Finnish nature. "Although terminals everywhere must meet the same basic technical and functional requirements, this terminal also seeks to convey the message that Finland is a highly technologically advanced nation with an exceptionally close relationship with nature," says chief designer Tuomas Silvennoinen of PES-Architects.
The security control area for transfer passengers features a high glass wall, granite floor and birch veneer ceiling. Wood details and other references to Finnish nature are used throughout. Advanced security solutions and passenger services ensure a safe, smooth and comfortable user experience.
The core of the new area is the double-height central plaza, designed as an oasis of calm and refreshment for weary travellers. The triangular space is encircled by a 75-metre-long and 2 metre-high LED screen displaying a changing Finnish landscape in different seasons. The immersive experience is enhanced by lighting and sound effects and the birch-panelled walls act as an interactive touch screen. The installation is a collaborative effort by OiOi Collective with Granlund Oy, based on a concept by Davidsson Tarkela Architects and Rune & Berg Design Oy.
Photo Pasi Salminen / Finavia
Helsinki central health and well-being centre project plan moving ahead
The health and well-being centre planned to be built over the existing Kamppi metro station in central Helsinki has been green-lighted by the City of Helsinki Social Services and Health Care Committee and will next be circulated for comments. The 14,000 m2 health and well-being centre would be a large centralised unit modelled according to the city’s new social services and health care service network plan. If realised, construction would start in 2022 at the earliest, with the building due for completion by early 2026. The estimated construction costs are EUR 74 million.
The new health centre building, designed by PES-Architects, is set to be a modern six-storey service centre of an architecturally high standard. The ground level will house the metro station and ticket hall as well as commercial premises to enliven the streetscape. Some health centre functions are also planned to be situated in the adjacent office building designed by Alvar Aalto (known as Sähkötalo, or Electricity Building).
Even at this early stage, the project has required exceptionally detailed planning due to the challenging site. The sensitive location of the building in the dense urban fabric on top of the existing metro station and in a prominent place between two architecturally significant buildings has also required close cooperation with the Helsinki City Planning Department. PES-Architects has been involved in planning the central health and well-being centre from the earliest needs assessment phase.
West Terminal 2 nominated for European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe Award 2019
We are honoured that West Terminal 2 has been nominated for the European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe Award 2019! The biannual prize is organised by the Fundació Mies van der Rohe and supported by the Creative Europe programme of the European Commission. Its main goal is to acknowledge and reward quality architectural production in Europe
West Terminal 2 was completed in 2017 in Helsinki West Harbour to provide better facilities for the growing volume of ferry traffic between Helsinki and Tallinn and as a landmark for the developing urban district of Jätkäsaari. The terminal has received numerous Finnish and international awards and recognitions, most recently the German Design Award and ICONIC AWARDS: Innovative Architecture Winner award.
West Terminal 2 wins German Design Award 2019
The West Terminal 2 ferry terminal in Helsinki has received another prestigious architecture award as Winner of the German Design Awards 2019. The awards will be presented at the awards ceremony in Frankfurt in February 2019.
Completed in 2017, West Terminal 2 was designed to serve the increasing volume of ferry traffic between Helsinki and Tallinn, Estonia, as well as creating a new landmark for the developing urban district of Jätkäsaari. West Terminal 2 has received a number of Finnish and international awards and recognitions, and was selected for the Finnish Architecture Biennial Review 2018, showcasing the best of Finnish architecture in 2015-2017.
From the German Design Awards international jury: "What makes this design compelling is its open, generously proportioned design that’s also agreeably light and congenial. An elegant modern structure that evokes an airport terminal and that promises to be an equally pleasant place to spend time in."
The German Design Awards are a premier international prize awarded through a nomination process by the German Design Council, the authorative body for branding and design in Germany. Its goal is to discover, present, and honour unique trends in design. Awards are granted to projects that blaze new trails in the international design landscape.
PES-Architects wins competition for Turku Railyard (Turun ratapiha) development project
PES-Architects' proposal Luoto (islet, skerry) has won the invited competition for an overall concept to develop the railyard area in the city of Turku on the southwest coast of Finland. The objective of the competition was to find a comprehensive plan that would complement the city structure as well as being realistic in terms of transport and costs and of high functional and architectural quality. The mainly privately financed complex is set to become a nationally and internationally attractive cluster of business, leisure, housing, events, experiences and sports for the 2020’s.
The focal point of our design is a comprises a central "hill" housing a hotel and sports arena onto which visitors can ascend to enjoy the scenic terraces overlooking the city. There is a water element at the top, reflecting the importance of the River Aura and the archipelago to the city. As a contrast, a horizontal building mass contains an experience centre and offices. Housing is located in angled blocks of various heights around the central buildings.
Strait Culture and Art Centre opens in Fuzhou, China
The Strait Culture and Art Centre (SCAC) in Fuzhou, China, was opened to the public on 10 October 2018. The opening concert featured the China Philharmonic Orchestra, with distinguished guests including Finland's Ambassador to China, Jarno Syrjälä.
The 153,000 m2 hybrid cultural complex is our seventh project completed in China. Its five buildings and connecting terraces and underground levels contain an opera house, concert hall, multifunctional theatre, art exhibition hall and cinema centre alongside various commercial and leisure services. The design of the white, ceramic-clad buildings evokes sails as well as the petals of a jasmine blossom, the city flower of Fuzhou.
The building complex was our winning proposal in an international invited competition hosted by the Fuzhou Government in 2013.
ICONIC AWARDS 2018: Innovative Architecture Winner award to West Terminal 2
West Terminal 2, Port of Helsinki, was awarded as an ICONIC AWARDS 2018: Innovative Architecture Winner at the awards ceremony on 8 October 2018 at the Pinakothek der Moderne gallery in Munich. The award, published in August, was accepted by architects Tuomas Silvennoinen (chief designer), Pekka Mäkelä, Hanna Eskelinen and Emanuel Lopes of PES-Architects.
The ICONIC AWARDS: Innovative Architecture is an international architecture and design competition that focuses on the interaction between the different disciplines. Awards are given to visionary buildings, innovative products and sustainable communication in all sectors of architecture, the construction and real estate business and the manufacturing industries.
The ICONIC AWARDS are granted by the German Design Council, one of the world’s leading competence centres for communication and knowledge transfer in design.
Pekka Salminen awarded with the 2018 World Green Design International Contribution Award
Professor, architect Pekka Salminen, founding partner of PES-Architects, was awarded with the 2018 World Green Design International Contribution Award (Individual) at the 2018 World Green Design Forum Brussels Summit on 27 September 2018. The award was conferred by the World Green Design Organization (WGDO) at the Award Ceremony held at the European Parliament in Brussels. The theme of the Summit was "Green Design Facilitates Global Green Development". The awards honour professional individuals and organisations that have made outstanding contributions to the human living environment through green design or the promotion of energy saving and the circulation economy.
Pekka Salminen and PES-Architects have worked actively in China for 15 years. In all competitions and realized projects, Salminen's leading principle has been sustainable design in the form of functionality and seeking new ways of using ecological materials. Main examples include:
- Wuxi Grand Theatre 2008-2012: For the first time in the world, a truly Chinese ecological material, a new type of technical bamboo, was used on a large scale.
- Strait Culture and Art Centre 2014-2018: Chinese ecological China White ceramics was used on a very large scale as a new type of exterior material and acoustic interior material.
- Nanjing Sino-Finnish Centre 2018-2021: Together with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, PES-Architects has developed the solar façade idea, based on printed organic decorative solar cells. The Sino-Finnish Centre will serve as a pilot project for the Nanjing Southern New Eco-Town.
The World Green Design Organization (WGDO) was founded in Brussels, Belgium, in 2013 as the first non-profit international organization to promote the development of green design throughout the world. The World Green Design Contribution Awards were now conferred for the eight time. Previous Finnish winners of the award include Jussi Pesonen (2014) and Eero Paloheimo (2013).
NANJING SINO-FINNISH CENTRE moving forwards
PES-Architects Shanghai office General Manager Ms.Lailinli and Nanjing South New Town Development Group Deputy General Manager Mr Yu Xin signed a design contract for the Sino-Finnish Co-operation and Exchange Centre in Nanjing on 14 September 2018. The Finnish Minister of the Environment, Energy and Housing, Mr. Kimmo Tiilikainen, also took part in the signing ceremony on his visit to Nanjing. The construction of the project is scheduled to begin by spring 2019.
The Nanjing Sino-Finnish Co-operation and Exchange Centre international architecture competition was organised in 2016 by the Nanjing Southern New Town management committee with support from the Embassy of Finland in China and Finpro. The competition was exceptional for China in that all the competitors were Finnish architects’ offices. The background of the competition traces back to a collaboration agreement between Finland and China, agreed between the the President of Finland, Mr. Sauli Niinistö, and President of China, Mr. Xi Jinping, in 2016.
PES-Architects' winning design is a metaphor of the massive ice blocks that form on frozen Finnish lakes and sea in winter. The project is a 210,000 m2 hybrid development, incorporating a hotel, offices, commercial, exhibition and multipurpose spaces, and will serve as the focal point for the residents of Nanjing Southern New Town. The project façade concept follows the project metaphor of frozen ice. The glass sheets of the undulating double skin façade are patterned with a printed solar-collecting ice crystal design. This façade, designed in collaboration with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, is based on printed organic solar cells. The functional facade will not only be a pilot project architecturally, but more so philosophically, as it suggests a future where solar energy can be collected from all kinds of surfaces.
The Sino-Finnish Centre in Nanjing received The Architectural Review Future Project Innovation Award 2017.
West Terminal 2 awarded as Winner of ICONIC AWARDS 2018: Innovative Architecture
The West Terminal 2 ferry terminal in Helsinki receives yet another recognition as a Winner in the ICONIC AWARDS 2018: Innovative Architecture competition.
The ICONIC AWARDS: Innovative Architecture is an international architecture and design competition that factors in the interaction between the various disciplines. Awards are given to visionary buildings, innovative products and sustainable communication in all sectors of architecture, the construction and real estate business and the manufacturing industries. The focus is on holistic production and the interaction between the trades in the context of architecture.
The ICONIC AWARDS are granted by the German Design Council, one of the world’s leading competence centres for communication and knowledge transfer in design.
West Terminal 2 nominated for German Design Award 2019
We are pleased to share that West Terminal 2 has been nominated for the German Design Award 2019. The new ferry terminal in Helsinki West Harbour was nominated by the German Design Council, the expert for brand and design in Germany. The nominated projects will be assessed by an international expert jury in early August 2018. The German Design Award seeks to discover, present, and honour unique trends in design. Awards are granted to projects that represent pioneering contributions to the German and international design landscape.
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West Terminal 2 and Ring Rail Line Airport station featured in Finnish Architecture Review 2018
Two of PES-Architects’ projects have been selected for the Finnish biennial architectural review 2018 : the West Terminal 2 ferry terminal in Helsinki and the Ring Rail Line underground train station at Helsinki Airport in Vantaa.
West Terminal 2, completed in 2017, is a ferry terminal serving the busy passenger traffic between Helsinki, Finland, and Tallinn, Estonia. According to the jury, “Terminal buildings can often be considered “non-places”. However, in this case the architecture enhances the transition, the movement between different modes of transportation from land to water or from water to land. What is interesting is how the architectural form and space enhance this dynamic function of the building. This is visible both from the outside, seen already from far away, but also as an experience when inside the building. The new West Terminal is a completely contemporary interpretation of its typology.”
The underground Airport station of the Ring Rail Line, completed in 2015, connects the airport to the centre of Helsinki . In the jury’s words, “The best airport experience offers a coherent sequence of transportation episodes that cover the whole journey spanning from home base to the aeroplane speeding down the runway. The Helsinki Airport Railway Station fulfils expectations as the pinnacle of the rail journey and the overture – as well as the final cadence – to the flight. The architecture relies on the impacts of the electrifying sensation of arrival and the scale of the episode that spans from the underground platforms to the ground-level entrance points.”
Finland’s biennial architectural review presents a selection of 16 recent projects showcasing new trends and high standards of excellence in Finnish architecture. The review is organised by the Museum of Finnish Architecture, the Finnish Association of Architects SAFA and the Alvar Aalto Foundation. The selections were made by a jury chaired by Portuguese architect Gonçalo Byrne. The review exhibition is open at the Museum of Finnish Architecture from 1 June to 16 September 2018.
Read the full review catalogue here.
PES-Architects at Open House Helsinki on 18 May
As part of the programme for our Helsinki-Shanghai exhibitionat the Museum of Finnish Architecture, our office will participate in the annual Open House Helsinki event with guided tours of two projects featured at the exhibition, the West Terminal 2 ferry terminal and the Ring Rail Line Airport train station , as well as our Marjaniemi office and studio. The tours will be led by the chief architect from PES-Architects. Welcome!
Details and schedule (in Finnish): Open House Helsinki
HELSINKI-SHANGHAI – PES-Architects’ exhibition at the Museum of Finnish Architecture
Finland and China come together in PES-Architects’ exhibition at the Museum of Finnish Architecture 7 March–3 June 2018. The exhibition focuses on our major domestic and international projects during the years 2001-2018, when we established our business in China and a new generation took charge of our activities in Finland. We have recreated two studios related to our China story in the museum, where visitors can study the materials, models and designs that go into making complex public buildings such as transport terminals, cultural centres and mixed-use highrises.
The exhibition also celebrates PES-Architects’ 50th anniversary. Rather than a retrospective, however, it is a story of continuity and new openings.
The exhibition catalogue is available in English and Chinese. The book “Wuxi Grand Theatre” will also be published in connection with the exhibition.
Third prize in competition for school and community centre in Tuusula, Finland
PES-Architects was awarded third prize in an open architecture competition for a new high school and multipurpose building, Monio, in Tuusula, Finland. Our proposal, Ahjo, suggests a new type of learning environment that combines a variety of learning functions into one functional and interdisciplinary whole. The architecture is based on a rational wood frame matrix: supporting spaces are condensed into compact concrete cores, liberating the remainder of the floor area for flexible reorganisation as needed. The heart of the cubical building mass is formed by a series of multipurpose halls that can be connected or separated to adapt to the needs of the school and its extended community. The three-floor-high building is vertically arranged into landscapes of community, learning and creation. Together, these spaces suggest a novel communal learning environment.
According to the jury, Ahjo is a beautiful, memorable and assertive proposal, where the spaces are arranged into a compact, sympathetic building volume that allows for a high degree of synergy between different users groups.
Ahjo was a joint effort between our Helsinki and Shanghai offices.
Read more (in Finnish)