Oodi Library – Unifor

Year of realization: 2018

Oodi is the name of the new Central Library in Helsinki, described as “the Nation’s birthday present to its citizens” and opened on 5 December 2018, on the eve of the hundredth anniversary of Finland’s independence.

The building, designed by ALA Architects, has three floors, each designed to reproduce a different atmosphere, with large glass facades to enhance the contribution of natural light.

The “book heaven”, as it has been called, is located on the top floor of the building. The interior ambience is marked by the orderly arrangement of the modular bookcases provided by UniFor, which designs and organizes the different functional areas of the library.

The Libreria CF (design Dante Bonuccelli) consists of aluminum shelves and uprights hooked together and fixed to a steel plate base. The white bookcases, produced in different versions, for over 350 elements, are modular with double facing and are customised with special fittings and accessories designed to meet the requirements of the project, which includes the integration of a linear LED lighting system and the provision of the relevant wiring inside the shelf structure.

For lighting, Unifor relies on the expertise of beblaze with the aim of creating a discreet but functional effect.

The strong point of this project was the perfect integration studied for aesthetic reasons, but also to ensure durability for such an important installation, evaluating in detail the dissipative aspects and finally the easy installation and maintenance, both of the individual shelves and of the entire system.

The experience of beblaze has made it possible to complement the natural lighting from outside, thanks to products with high light quality, both during the summer season, and during the long periods of winter darkness.