The design and implementation of the building were granted the BREEAM® Excellent environmental certification. Aurum was also awarded the 2022 Good Design Award.
Aurum is a new multi-purpose building designed for Åbo Akademi University and the University of Turku, located in a culturally and historically significant area near the Turku Cathedral. Aurum is mainly used by the Faculty of Science and Engineering of Åbo Akademi University and the Department of Chemistry of the University of Turku.
In the design of Aurum, special attention was paid to the multifunctionality of the building and the synergy between different building functions and users. A tall and bright lobby that serves all user groups and works as a meeting place runs through the building and is connected to the rest of the university campus by passages on the upper floors.
University projects are complex and multifaceted projects, where co-operation is essential. The project building was designed with a special emphasis on user-orientation and co-operation, resulting in a new space-efficient laboratory concept and various learning and working environments that support different interactions and shared use.
Arco also co-operated with Turku’s building control, statutory land use planning authorities and the Finnish Heritage Agency. In this way, the relatively large building mass and all the desired functions, from laboratories to restaurants, were successfully integrated into the culturally and historically significant environment. Arco was awarded with the Good Building Site 2021 honorary certificate by the project client, which highlighted, among other things, our excellent co-operation and team spirit.
To counterbalance the technical laboratory building, the space is made of real materials: concrete and wood. In the design of the facilities, special attention was paid to the multifunctionality of the building and the synergy between different building functions and users.
The interior design included surface materials, fitted furniture and special fixtures, working and learning environment concepts, tendered loose furniture, and signage design. A special aspect of the surface material design process was choosing the materials for the technically demanding surfaces in the laboratories.
The interior of Aurum forms an integral artistic whole with the architecture of the building. The Aurum name served as inspiration for the understated use of brass in fittings, furniture, signs and glass wall tapings.
Aurum has many special teaching facilities, which demanded iron-clad expertise from the design team. The building contains 8,300 m² of research and teaching laboratories, 200 m² of radionuclide laboratories, 3,400 m² of learning environments and 5,500 m² of mini working environments. In addition to teaching facilities, the building has a restaurant and sports facilities.
In Aurum, sustainability and environmental responsibility were successfully taken into account in the design solutions and material choices, and at the time of its construction, Aurum was the first university building in Finland to receive the BREEAM Excellent environmental certification. In addition, the main lobby of the Aurum building, with its wooden lath walls, was awarded the Good Design Award 2022 in the Environment category. The Aurum project was based on the campus vision work, which is part of the campus strategy of the University Properties of Finland and universities.
