Teknos makes Scandic Grand Central Hotel last longer
Teknos has been helping Scandic Hotels to give a second life for a very well-known building designed by Eliel Saarinen: the Scandic Central Hotel. After four years of renovation, this place is again able to shine bright with Teknos products and, more importantly, last longer!
Building with a unique history
Scandic Grand Central is an incredibly unique and magnificent hotel in the very heart of Helsinki. It is located right next to the central railway station, and it is designed by a globally known Finnish architect, Eliel Saarinen, in 1909. Previously, the place was used as the administration building for VR, The government-owned railway company of Finland. The place bears a significant historical and cultural legacy, and, for this reason, the building is an essential part of the cityscape of Helsinki. The building is also one of the most prestigious and protected historical estates in Finland. Previously, the building has been used as the head office for the state railway station’s administration.
Building was not only renovated but also extended
Giving a second life by designing a big renovation and additional extension for this important historical landmark was not an easy project. Craftsmen were working hard to blur the boundaries of historic and contemporary design to successfully mix the old and new together into a stylistic symbiosis. Teknos was taking part in the planning, customizing, and delivering the required high-quality coatings for this big reconstruction project. In the end, when the coatings were on the right place and the construction was done, the hotel was able to combine modernity and Art nouveau style together. Art nouveau was Eliel Saarinen’s own special passion and, therefore, its features were kept in mind throughout the whole process. For example, the height of the ceilings, which is 4,5 meters, was kept the same for all the rooms, including the totally new expansion part. Big old original windows were revised to bring a nice spacious feeling for the rooms and provide a sense of history. Even the old payroll office is now modified to be the hotel lounge. The most unique hotel feeling in Finland can be clearly sensed by only walking the first steps inside the hotel. When looking at the building from outside, you can barely recognize it as a hotel. When entering the hotel reservation area, you will be locating yourself into the old congress room of VR’s former office building.
According to Satu Järvelä, General Manager, Scandic Hotels, the renovation of this building lasted for four years in total. To run the big modifications effectively and in time, the property’s construction side was divided into different segments with their own deadlines and target areas. Finally, the hotel was able to open its doors for the public in early April 2021. No matter how busy the next summer season is going to be, the hotel has the capacity to serve its guests in 491 rooms. At the time being, Scandic Grand Central is one of the biggest hotels in Finland.
A local painting firm working with Teknos' products
A local Finnish painting firm, Maalaamo Pauli Hietanen Oy, was taking part in the renovation process, and chose to use Teknos’ products for it
“If possible, I always choose to use Teknos’ products when it comes to my projects, both in my personal and professional life. I have over 40 years of experience from collaborating with Teknos, and everything has always worked effortlessly and pleasantly with the company”, says Reijo Konttinen, Production Manager of Maalamo Pauli Hietanen Oy.
In the renovation, we used TEKNOSPRO 5 for the ceilings and for the walls. The walls of the hotel are exqcuisite and they spread a unique and close to the nature -feeling for the visitors. The primer used for the top coatings was TEKNOSPRO POHJA. The tin roof of this four-star hotel was coated by KIRJO AQUA, to give it a beautiful shine and protection for the challenging and quickly changing Nordic weather conditions. TIMANTTI was, in turn, used for all of the numerous bathrooms. Windowsills and radiator covers were coated with FUTURA AQUA.
“The products fulfilled our needs perfectly – they worked and looked the way we wanted. I feel like I do not need to consider any of the competitors’ products when I choose the coatings for my projects. Teknos has the things we need”, Konttinen adds.
”All in all, I am very pleased to see how the hotel turned out to be. Even though it is always challenging to work with such old buildings like this, we managed to do it well. When it comes to my future projects, I will then, again, turn to Teknos to get good looking and well-working products.” Konttinen ends.