Timber iQ December 2019 - January 2020 // Issue: 47 | Page 26

INTERNATIONAL PROJECT
The library will enliven and diversify the new urban
environment created in the Töölönlahti area. It will offer
activities and experiences for all ages. There will be plenty of
spaces that enable people to gather and spend time together,
free of charge. The role of the library’s clients will evolve from
passive media users to active agents, participants and
content producers. As a non-commercial open public space,
the new Central Library will act as Helsinki residents’ common
living room, workspace and learning environment.
TECHNICAL DETAILS
Oodi’s spatial concept, based on three individual public
floors, is executed by building the library as an inhabited,
asymmetrical bridge spanning over 100m over the open
ground floor space. The bridge structure, consisting of steel
trusses and beams, is supported by two massive steel
arches, tensioned together with a reinforced concrete tension
slab. The innovative structural solution has enabled both the
construction of the flexible column-free interior spaces and
the possibility for the construction of a future road tunnel
under the site. Secondary steel trusses support the
cantilevering balcony and roof canopy asymmetrically from
the arch structure, forming a unique structural design to
accommodate both permanent and temporary functions for
both the library and the public realm.
Oodi has been built using local materials and with local climate
conditions in mind. The wooden façade is made from
prefabricated elements. Finnish high-quality spruce, which is
33mm thick, was used for the cladding. A specific grading and
quality control system was developed for the timber, the
sawing and the treatment of the slats. The complex curved
The top floor of the library overlooking the children’s library.
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DECEMBER 2019 / JANUARY 2020 //
www.timberiq.co.za