Long live the campus! The foundation laying ceremony of Otakaari 2 celebrated the university's new buildings

Published: 5.10.2022

The foundation of the campus' newest buildings, Otakaari 2A and 2B, was laid on 29 September 2022. The new name of the Otakaari 2A building, Marsio, a tribute to Aalto University alumna Aino Marsio-Aalto, was revealed at the event

Mayor of Espoo, alumnus Jukka Mäkelä and President Ilkka Niemelä taking part of the foundation laying. Photo: Mikko Raskinen / Aalto University

The foundation of the Otakaari 2A and 2B buildings was laid at the end of September. The new name of Otakaari 2A, Marsio, honouring alumna Aino Marsio-Aalto's legacy and pioneering work in Finnish design, was revealed at the event.

'The campus is the home of a community that welcomes students, researchers, our partners and others interested in our work. The entity formed by these new buildings opens doors to the diversity of Aalto University in a completely new way, collides fields and people, connects the digital and physical worlds, is multisensory, interactive, surprising, inspiring and experiential. At the same time, it envelops cutting-edge scientific research within,' said Aalto University's President Ilkka Niemelä in the university's greeting.

Otaniemi grows and lives in time. Continuous change of the university, the development of the campus and its surrounding environment were emphasised in the greetings given in the event.

In the middle of the developing campus

'The nature of universities is to nurture development and change', described the Speaker of the Parliament Matti Vanhanen in his greeting.

With the campus's newest buildings, life, events and encounters are returning concretely to the campus after a few quieter years. Still, the coordination of digital and physical space has been taken into account even better to support hybrid working and studying.

In the construction of Otakaari 2A and 2B has been an open and seamless cooperation between the construction site and the entire Aalto community. The campus users are used to the fact that the routes change rapidly and there is a lot of construction on their way, but at the same tima are also always pleased with how the completed projects make Otaniemi an increasingly pleasant and better place.

Spaces for the School of Arts, Design and Architecture are being completed in the Marsio building, as well as for Aalto University's use as a showcase. Otakaari 2B, on the other hand, brings much-needed research and laboratory space to the most central location of the campus. This building will also be the gateway to Nanotalo. The buildings are scheduled to be completed in 2023-2024.

Builder: Aalto University Campus & Real Estate
Contractor: NCC
Designer: SARC Architects