Alvar Aalto’s Silo, Oulo, Finland

One of Aalto’s earlier commissions, this building was constructed as a woodchip silo as part of a wood pulping complex located in the port of Oulo in Northern Finland. Initially housing two silos, it was expanded to include a third silo in the 1950s. The site has been derelict since the 1980s and although a preserved building of note, the silo building has suffered from neglect. The proposals are to develop the site as a new centre for innovative technologies and to preserve the existing building, creating habitable spaces that will maintain its industrial heritage.