Adorned with Nordic Copper cladding, the award-winning Lyyra block fits beautifully and unobtrusively into its urban surroundings in Helsinki.
A new landmark in the rapidly developing Kallio district of Helsinki, Finland, the Lyyra block offers a variety of spaces for work, dining, accommodation, shopping and living.
Lyyra comprises two plots separated by a pedestrian promenade, with new cafes, restaurants, and services within reach of the area’s residents. Located directly above a metro station, Lyyra also offers direct tram and bus connections to all parts of Helsinki.
Rather than dominating the neighborhood, Lyyra is designed to blend into the cityscape. The plan considerately ensures that clear views remain for the residents of neighboring buildings, and a triangular design communicates with the neighboring red brick landmark Arena House.
“Sometimes you go for contrast, but this design combines both contrast and adaptation to the surrounding buildings,” explains Tom Cederqvist, Architecture Director and partner at ARCO Architecture Company.
Lyyra was designed by ARCO and built by Ylva, a company owned by the student union of the University of Helsinki.
A selection of Nordic Copper surfaces
Lyyra’s façades reflect the materials and colour palette of the adjacent buildings. Copper was a natural choice for window trims, matching the façade of the nearby circular Ympyrätalo building and the roofs of Kallio Church, another landmark visible from Lyyra.
Lyyra consists of three buildings: an office building, a design hotel and a residential building with dozens of rental apartments. Each building features different shades of Nordic Copper for a unique visual impression.
“We started viewing pictures and samples together with Aurubis from an early stage, and the collaboration with them was always very fluent,” says Juhani Suikki, Senior Architect and partner at ARCO.
For the office building, the choice was a combination of pre-patinated Nordic Green and pre-oxidised Nordic Brown. The hotel building stands out with rich, golden Nordic Royal. Finally, the residential building features an attractive mixture of Nordic Nordic Brown and Nordic Brown Light.
Following plans by ARCO and Aurubis, the copper cladding was produced by another partner in the project, Teräselementti Oy.
Fitting choice for sustainable buildings
In addition to the façades, copper is also prominent in the Lyyra office building lobby, and the color scheme throughout the whole block follows shades of copper.
“Copper is a traditional material, warm and lively, and it patinates beautifully. It was an optimal material for accomplishing our goals in this project,” says Cederqvist.
Copper aligned well with the project’s ambitious sustainability goals. Lyyra’s lifecycle carbon footprint has been assessed, and 97% of all demolition waste from old office buildings on the site has been recycled. The Lyyra buildings meet the criteria of the A energy class regulated by the Finnish Ministry of the Environment, and LEED Platinum and WELL certifications are being applied for.
This complex building set was modelled in BIM in all design areas. This guaranteed the integration of planning across all design areas and helped construction work on site. The project has already received wide acclaim. Lyyra had the honor of being named one of the winners of the 2024 international Tekla BIM Awards, following a win at Finland’s Tekla BIM Awards the previous year.
Copper is also fully recyclable utilising long-established practices – 97% of copper in construction comes from recycling. With an unrivalled lifespan due to its integral protective patination, it requires no maintenance or decoration and, of course, retains a high scrap value at eventual demolition ensuring optimal recycling.
