Technology Center Teknia Ltd., Kuopio, Finland

Interior Design: Ossi Haatainen, Teknia; Olli Ljokkoi, Mira Martikainen, Mainostoimisto Crealab Oy
Lighting Design: Ari Tiilikainen, LITE –designs

Technology Center Teknia Ltd in Kuopio, Finland opened a multipurpose space called Showroom in the basement of its MicroTower high-rise building. The Showroom is part of the WellTeknia concept, which offers an innovative environment for R&D and commercial projects, serving corporations and researchers as well as other users in the area.

The concept offers a range of support services for testing, piloting and commercialization of new products and services. The space can be used in product launches and pre-marketing as well as a tool in product design, etc. And because Technology Center Teknia Ltd features the highest degree of internationalization of any science park in Finland, the space can also serve to showcase local know-how to foreign visitors.

Design requirements
Several key requirements were set as the basis of the design process: usability of the space, ease of maintenance, flexibility, expandability, modularity and innovation. Removable walls consist of holed panel modules, which allow for easy expandability and movability. The modules also include embedded box-shaped showcases. Four electronic information displays are also featured.

Light modification
In addition to basic spotlighting, the lighting's goal was the ability to modify the space's appearance. Combining visual impressions of lighting and audio as well as of the space's sensory experience was also set as a goal. Technically, the solution had to be easily installed and modifiable.

The existing structures in the space, such as walls and ceiling, were left untouched whenever possible. A holed structure in the modular wall panels allows for squared indirect and background lighting by Martin Architectural Cyclo 04 DMX full color mixing luminaires, while the white surface on fixed walls act as reflection surfaces. Supplied by Martin Architectural distributor Electrosonic Lightinen Ltd, the Cyclo 04 is an RGBW T5 fluorescent color changer capable of generating nearly all colors or white light of any color temperature. During business hours, they allow the space to change its appearance slowly at one hour intervals or at various speeds and tones in accordance with multimedia presentations. After hours, the space changes into a more entertaining and dynamic lounge.


LightJockey control
A 43 inch plasma display acts as the main attention point of the space and is driven by a media server. A PC-based Martin LightJockey 2 lighting controller controls the ensemble of light, audio and video and the LightJockey Manager's Scheduler module takes care of daily calendar routines. It is also possible to bypass the calendar routines with LightJockey Manager's Touchscreen application.

Some traditional info kiosks are also present in the space, two of which feature a touch screen and one a normal Internet terminal. Halogen spotlight modules, recessed in the ceiling, were customized for the Teknia Showroom. The lower grill ceiling was preserved and some plating was replaced with directional spotlight modules with luminaire-specific dimmers.

It is now possible for Teknia to offer a technologically contemporary space for multimedia presentations that includes video, still media and sound as well as a complementary lighting scheme. The result is a unique atmosphere, customized and synchronized to each presentation or event.