Pionen White Mountain Data Centre in Stockholm, Sweden

July 27, 2010 Category: Cultural, Public Buildings

Pionen White Mountain Data Centre designed by Albert France-Lanord is located in Stockholm, Sweden. Cold War defence facilities do not often cross paths with contemporary architecture but when they do, the result can be quite unforgettable. Take Pionen – White Mountains: originally designed during the afore mentioned Cold War as part of the central defence of Stockholm, the bunker had office space and an operation centre for rescue personnel, beds, kitchens, a communication room, filters for radioactive dust, warehouse for gas-masks, etc. Prime aim of the bunker? To withstand – if not a direct hit by the hydrogen bomb – a close hit.

Years have gone by and now Pionen, still under the original code name, is a state of the art ultra secure hosting centre for co-location plus network operation for Bahnhof, one of Sweden’s largest Internet Service Providers.

The vision is a joint venture between Bahnhof’s team of techies lead by CEO Jon Karlung and the architect Albert France-Lanord who masterfully interpreted Bahnnof’s idea of a high tech space buried in rock inspired by films like Logans Run, Silent Running and the old Star Wars.

As far as power supplies go, Bahnhof kept to the Cold War theme and installed diesel engines that where originally designed for submarines and, just for fun, also installed the warning system of sound-horns from an original German submarine.

Pionen White Mountain Data Centre Design Architechture Plan