Finnish Stone Center Opens

JUUKA, Finland – Plenty of national attractions are made of stone, but the Finnish Stone Center may be the first to make stone the center of attention.
More than three years of industry work led to the opening of the Finnish Stone Center on June 17. Leaders of Finland’s stone industry, along with top government representatives, officially inaugurated the complex, located approximately 160 miles northeast of Helsinki.
The idea for the stone center came from Reijo Vauhkonen, head of the Juuka-based Tulikivi Group (one of the largest stone-processing companies in Europe). Vauhkonen and other industry leaders in Finland saw the center as an attraction – there’s a museum involved – and as a gathering point for stone in Finland.
In addition to tourist-related exhibits, the center will be the site of hands-on training in stone-production techniques, and also offer a “Natural Stone Help Desk” to solve pressing problems. Finnish stone companies will also be able to use the center to exhibit their products to consumers and the construction trades.
But, will tourists want to look at a museum of Finnish stone? It’s still early, but first results reported from center officials are encouraging, with 200-400 people a day touring the facility.