Imatra GIS 變電站 by Virkkunen and Co Architects

Imatra GIS 變電站 by Virkkunen and Co Architects is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2021 A' Design Award 銀獎 in 建築、樓宇及結構設計 Competition Category.

銀建築· 2021

Imatra GIS 變電站

by Virkkunen and Co Architects

Client: Virkkunen & Co Architects

A' Design Award 銀獎 Winner in 建築 Category

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Verified Award Winner

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The Design

About Imatra GIS 變電站

Imatra GIS係一座坐落喺芬蘭東部Imatrankoski急流景觀之中嘅變電站。呢個項目包括一幢變電站建築物以及五座電力塔架同終端設施。建築物採用混凝土框架同雙層外牆設計。外層以人手製造嘅長磚砌成鋸齒形輪廓，並由鋼架支撐。輸電結構則採用三角形焊接鋼型材製成。此設計拆解咗建成環境嘅各種元素，再以全新嘅抽象形態重新組合，與周邊景觀達致平衡。

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award 銀獎

Imatra GIS 變電站是 A' Design Award 銀獎得主，這是授予頂級、華美而令人印象深刻的設計的極為崇高的認可。銀獎得主是極其卓越、極具創造力的作品，展現出其設計師傑出的專業技能、才華與敏銳。預計Imatra GIS 變電站將成為一件出色的典範之作，兼具非凡的專業性與深刻的創新性。這件贏得 A' Design Award 銀獎的設計是一項備受矚目、令人欽佩的發明，造福並拓展藝術、科學、設計和技術的界限。Imatra GIS 變電站是一件令人羨慕的創作，它喚起渴望，帶來積極的情感，並激發驚嘆與讚嘆。

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: The project is composed of an electricity substation building and an array of five designer power pylons and terminals, set in the national landscape of Imatrankoski rapids in Eastern Finland. The new structures were designed to be in balance with the surrounding landscape. Their design breaks apart aspects of the built context and reassembles them in a new abstracted form. A combination of hand-made and industrial materials and structures is used to achieve this.
Dimensions & Packaging: The substation building floor area: 965 sqm. Length x width x height of the building 44,1 m x 13,2 m x 8,1 m.
Tags: infrastructure, architecture, landscape, electricity substation, transmission, power line, brick, concrete, steel
Production Technology: The substation building has a concrete frame and double-skin facades. The outermost facade layer consists of hand-made long bricks laid in a zig-zag profile. The brick cladding is supported by a steel frame fixed to the inner concrete facades. The concrete structure consists of pre-fabricated and in-situ parts. The transmission structures are made of triangular welded steel profiles. They consist of workshop-made, coated pre-fabricated sections assembled and erected on the site without welding.
Design Challenge: The main challenge was architectural rather than technical, due to the qualities of the surrounding landscape and the history of the area. Visual and structural coherence of the distinct parts and general sensitivity to the context were methods for overcoming this challenge. We arrived at the final design through a process of elimination. Dozens of prototype 3D models were evaluated for impact in a detailed and accurate site model based on an extensive point-cloud data set of the area.
Research: We used site visits and literature sources for determining visual and historical factors that would most influence and serve the design. Literature about the history of the landscape, tourism, architecture, and industry in the area was used. The finding that had the most impact on the design was based on the analysis of the external architecture of the old hydropower plant: the rhythm of the facade openings, and the materials used in the buildings.
Inspiration: The beautiful landscape and the historical significance of the area were the primary sources of inspiration for us. The existing, impressive industrial architecture of the context was another major factor in the design. The guiding principle has been that the new structures should form a clearly defined new historical layer. They would also have to be timeless and combine harmoniously with the context. We sought to further elevate the beauty of the site.
Project Duration: Project completed: 2020
Location: Imatra, Finland
Operation Flow: Imatra electricity substation and the transmission structures are not fenced off from the surroundings and they can be approached freely. The substation is an unmanned facility that is mainly remote-controlled from a central control room located off-site. It is visited regularly for inspection and maintenance purposes by trained personnel. In the main process equipment room, the users control the switchgear equipment on a workstation designed for this purpose.
Team Members: Tuomas Kivinen
Anna Blomqvist
Maria Karjalainen
Image Credits: Image #1: Photographer Tuomas Kivinen, 2020.
Image #2: Photographer Tuomas Kivinen, 2021.
Image #3: Photographer Tuomas Kivinen, 2020.
Image #4: Photographer Tuomas Kivinen, 2021.
Image #5: Photographer Tuomas Kivinen, 2021.