The Oulu Protocol
The Oulu Protocol emerges from the AaltoSiilo project in Oulu, Finland, a collaboration between Skene Catling de la Peña and Factum Foundation, supported by Oulu2026, the city’s programme as European Capital of Culture. The AaltoSiilo is a striking concrete silo designed in 1931 by Alvar and Aino Aalto for the Toppila Cellulose Factory, standing as a monument to Finland’s early industrial modernism.
Abandoned for decades, the silo was at risk of demolition. Yet its reuse has become the cornerstone of a new model for sustainable and creative renovation, one that treats industrial heritage not as a relic of the past, but as a living resource for the future. The Oulu Protocol was conceived as a framework that grows from this specific context but aspires to become globally applicable: a set of principles for re-inventing, re-using, and re-vitalising industrial structures in a way that integrates engineering, aesthetics, logistics, legislation, economics, and politics.
As a new framework for action, the Oulu Protocol proposes three guiding principles:
- RE-INVENT – Don’t demolish. Find new uses for old structures.
The AaltoSiilo itself is a radical example: a 28-metre-high, uninsulated concrete silo built not for people but for industrial processes. By proving that even such an “impossible” building can be repurposed, it sends a message of optimism: any structure can be given new life. - RE-USE – If demolition is unavoidable, reuse the parts.
Next to the silo, the new AaltoSiilo Annex will be built using concrete spolia (large blocks of concrete surgically removed from other buildings slated for demolition). This approach transforms destruction into creation, establishing both a new aesthetic language and a protocol for structural reuse, with major implications for the global construction industry. - RE-VITALISE – Combine re-invention and reuse to catalyse social change.
The AaltoSiilo project is not just about architecture; it’s about community transformation. The annex includes a research centre, a community sauna, workshops, and public spaces, making it a catalyst for social and cultural renewal in Meri-Toppila, a neighbourhood long defined by post-industrial decline.
Together, these principles propose a shift in mindset: away from the culture of demolition and reconstruction, and toward an ecology of continuity where heritage, innovation, and sustainability coexist.
Glass rods were used to fill the holes left by the timber pegs that originally held the shuttering apart when the concrete was poured. The result is a work of art in itself, creating a constellation of lights and halos inside the Silo when the sun hits the roof © Charlotte Skene Catling
At the heart of the Oulu Protocol lies the concept of Material Resonance: a way of connecting industrial cultural heritage to the present through the physical, poetic, and symbolic reuse of materials. In the Silo, every restoration decision has been guided by this idea.
- The thin concrete skin of the building, punctuated by small holes left by rotted wooden shuttering pegs, have been repaired using glass rods. This single gesture reveals the entire life cycle of the structure — its conception, decay, and renewal — in one material act.
- Conventional repair methods for reinforced concrete typically involve hacking away large sections of the surface to expose corroded rebar. In the Silo, this would have meant destroying much of the original structure. Instead, Factum Foundation is researching into the use of an acrylic resin enabling light-touch repairs using a flexible, lightweight composite that preserves the original material integrity.
- The design also reintroduces materials that recall the Silo’s industrial and natural context: pine tar (a reference to Oulu’s 16th-century export industry) is used to waterproof the roof and perfume the interior wood; cellulose serves as insulation and in nanoform improves glazing; wood chips, once raw material for paper, now provide radiant heating.
These choices embody Material Resonance — creating continuity between the building’s history and its new life through material intelligence and sensory experience.
Concrete Spolia and Structural Innovation
The concept of Concrete Spolia (a term borrowed from the reuse of fragments of ancient monuments) is being redefined for the industrial age. Instead of reducing demolished concrete to dust, the Oulu team proposes surgical dismantling, preserving large, structurally significant pieces for reuse. This approach requires new engineering standards: the behaviour of reused precast or in-situ concrete blocks differs from that of new ones. Working closely with engineers, the project is developing a structural protocol to assess, classify, and reuse these components. In doing so, it opens an entirely new chapter in sustainable construction.
Examples of spolia in history and concept of a concrete spolia on the right © Skene Catling de la Peña
This diagram outlines the process, from identifying buildings, component analysis, application of structural protocol, selection of reusable pieces, coordination with demolition contractor, transport, storing and new construction on site. New construction involves setting up an engineering strategy, understanding economic and legal constraints and liasing with local authorities, legislation and planning laws.
From Local Action to Global Model
Oulu provides the perfect testing ground for this new model. The city is large enough to be a European Capital of Culture, yet small enough to allow direct collaboration with political, academic, and cultural stakeholders. The AaltoSiilo stands at the intersection of heritage preservation, technological innovation, and social transformation. The goal is to make the Oulu Protocol a model for future policy: an environmental framework as influential as the Montreal Protocol of 1987, which addressed the depletion of the ozone layer. Just as that agreement redefined international environmental standards, the Oulu Protocol seeks to embed principles of reuse, reinvention, and revitalisation into urban planning, architectural education, and construction legislation.
Concept renders of the AaltoKioski and AaltoSauna - Amphiteatre © Skene Catling de la Peña
A Legacy of Optimism
Ultimately, the Oulu Protocol is driven by a single message: optimism. It challenges the pessimism that often defines post-industrial landscapes and proposes a tangible alternative — one rooted in creativity, craftsmanship, and respect for the existing world. By showing that a disused concrete silo can become a living cultural hub, by proving that the past can be rewritten through materials that resonate with memory, and by aligning art, architecture, engineering, and policy toward a shared purpose, the Oulu Protocol offers not only a method but a mindset for the future. It calls for a world where we no longer measure progress by what we destroy, but by how we transform and preserve what we already have.