GoCo Health Innovation City

New homes in the innovation cluster

Åbro’s old industrial area is being transformed into a new innovation cluster that will accelerate Swedish health innovation by creating new meetings, innovations and collaborations. Today, there are workshops, offices, retail and research premises here. Several companies have established themselves here, one of the major players is AstraZeneca and its research activities. In the new district, which has been named GoCo Health Innovation City , three residential blocks are now to be built. liljewall was commissioned to design the first block, Spina, after winning a parallel assignment. The block contains approximately 175 rental apartments. Later, the Axis block with tenant-owned apartments was also designed. For Realy Bostad, we have obtained a building permit for the upcoming Atlas block with an additional 181 rental apartments and three premises.

The three residential blocks are varied in height, volume, material and colour to create a district rich in experiences. Particular emphasis has been placed on the design of the entrance floors, with glazed premises, benches in the window niches, vertical divisions, life shifts between different volumes, varied materiality and relief effect. Different facade materials such as brick, wood, plaster, sheet metal and slate are mixed to give all the houses a clear identity, but at the same time tie all the residential blocks together into a harmonious whole. ​

The housing to be built will make it possible for visiting researchers, employees and others attracted by GoCo to live centrally in the area. Different apartment sizes create the conditions for a mix of people in different life situations in the area, and with premises on the ground floor it will become a lively and social district.

A living urban space

liljewall is also a landscape architect and has designed the streets and squares for the first phase. The goal is to create a pleasant environment in a place that is currently perceived as relatively barren; to create urban spaces that are alive in a double sense, which both provide space for meetings and activities but also have a large element of greenery that contributes valuable ecosystem services. liljewall has also designed a mixed-use building for GoCo and BRA Bygg. The building is currently home to three different tenants; Norlandia, which provides elderly care, the restaurant Olssons mat and the women’s clinic Akleja.