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Companies and associations operating in road and pavement engineering have made a significant joint donation to support education and research in the field at Aalto University. The €400,000 donation was made by Asfalttikallio, GRK Suomi, INFRA, NYNAS, Ramboll Finland, SKOL, and the Finnish Road Association (Suomen Tieyhdistys). In addition, the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency (Väylävirasto) is supporting the field through commissioned research. 

The donation will ensure the continuation of teaching in key courses that are critical to students’ competencies. It will also strenghten research in the field by funding the hiring of several postdoctoral researchers and doctoral candidates. Aalto has also just launched a search for a professorship in pavement engineering. 

‘Expertise in road and pavement engineering will be needed in the future as well – both to tackle challenges such as those posed by climate change and to develop new materials and more cost‑effective construction methods. Road conditions in Finland are unique, and research produced elsewhere often cannot be directly applied here,’ says Kari Tammi, Dean of the School of Engineering. ‘We warmly thank all donors for this significant support, which will strengthen critical expertise in the field in Finland.’ 

‘It is great that we can preserve the traditional professorship at Aalto and at the same time ensure a pipeline of new experts into the field. Through research, we can make sure we are able to meet the challenges of the future,’ says Paavo Syrjö, CEO of INFRA ry. 

‘We consider it crucial that teaching and research in a core area of the infrastructure sector—pavement engineering—are maintained and developed also at the university level. Transport routes and their high-quality planning, construction, and maintenance play a vital role in safeguarding our country’s logistics, security of supply, and resilience. They also ensure the smooth and safe logistics of goods and passengers,’ says Matti Kiiskinen, Development Manager at SKOL ry.