Campus IN DEVELOPMENT
Contents
7
10
12
14
17
20
22
24
Leader, Harriet Wallberg-Henriksson and Sten Wetterblad.................5
Karolinska Institutet’s lecture hall complex........................................................ 17
Karolinska Institutet is growing.........................................................................................7
“An auditorium to be proud of ”, Harriet Wallberg-Henriksson.......................................................................................... 18
“Attractive research environments for an expanding university”, Rune Fransson...................................................................................................................................8
Biomedicum – the laboratory of the future....................................................... 20
The green inner campus...................................................................................................... 10
“Interaction benefits research”, Christer Höög............................................... 21
“An urban university where old and new meet”, Mårten Tiselius............................................................................................................................... 11
The Public Health Block – a new office and education block........ 22
Future learning environments........................................................................................ 12 “Pleasant environments are important to the students”, Axel Dahlstedt................................................................................................................................. 13 Map of the Solna Campus................................................................................................. 14
“Flexible teaching rooms make for creative learning processes”, Hannele Moisio............................................................................................................................ 23 Gamma – the third block of Karolinska Institutet Science Park......... 24 “New ideas are hatched in the meeting of great minds”, Märit Johansson........................................................................................................................... 25
4
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
“New knowledge environments take us into the future” New buildings are sprouting up everywhere on Karolinska Institutet’s Solna Campus – evidence that the university has made a flying start into its third century. The soul of Karolinska Institutet is its people. Without their knowledge and commitment, it would be impossible for the university to accomplish its mission. Because of this, it is of outmost importance to give employees and students alike the very best opportunities to do their work; and to this end they need modern, fully equipped premises. Buildings are a sign of their time. They reflect a particular time-spirit and say something about the society in which they were built. When the current Solna Campus was laid out in the 1940s, a building was erected for every department in accordance with contemporary education and research practices – with each discipline set apart from the others with few points of contact between them. These days, the way we work is very different, and we must now cater for cross-disciplinary research and education and collaboration between different actors in the buildings that are now taking shape.
Harriet Wallberg-Henriksson President of Karolinska Institutet
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
In 2013, work will start on Biomedicum, which is set to be one of the largest laboratories in the world, offering unique opportunities for collaboration between the disciplines that exist on campus. And within a year, Karolinska Institutet will also boast a brand new auditorium. Up and running already is the Science for Life Laboratory – a joint project between Karolinska Institutet, the Royal Institute of Technology and Stockholm and Uppsala universities. It also represents Sweden’s largest investment in large-scale bioscience research to date. The Stockholm County Council is building a new, modern university hospital nearby. All that is now under construction is a concrete expression of the vision of this region to strengthening the city’s position as one of the world’s leading life-science regions. New buildings inspire confidence in the future and show that we are at the crossroads of old and new, that we embrace progress, and that we are girding our loins for the future. March 2012
Sten Wetterblad Regional director of Akademiska Hus Stockholm
5
6
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
Karolinska Institutet is growing Karolinska Institutet is an important player in Stockholm Life – the hub of the life science area that is slowly emerging on and round the university’s Solna Campus. Karolinska Institutet and Akademiska Hus are investing in future knowledge environments to meet tomorrow’s research and education needs. The goal is to strengthen Karolinska Institutet’s position as a world-leading medical university through top-class research, education and enterprise. Favorable area for knowledge environments Karolinska Institutet is at the centre of the development of Hagastaden, the district at the juncture of Stockholm and Solna. Here, there is a large concentration of research and enterprise in life science – a collective term for the sciences that are dedicated to improving human lives and health. The vision is for the area to become a life-science centre of great international impact – Stockholm Life.
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
Effective premises for research and education Four new buildings are being erected on Karolinska Institutet’s Solna Campus. The buildings, which have yet to be given their official names, are located along the main Solnavägen thoroughfare, where the campus meets the new university hospital. The ongoing or planned projects are: • New office and teaching block, strategically situated at the junction of Solnavägen/Tomtebodavägen. Due for completion in December 2012. • Gamma – the third block of Karolinska Institutet Science Park. Due for completion in summer 2013. • The lecture hall complex – an auditorium with room for 1,000 people, offices and restaurants. Due for completion in summer 2013. • Biomedicum – one of Europe’s largest laboratories. Construction projected from 2013 to 2018. • Future learning environments – renovation of the campus and hospitals where Karolinska Institutet has teaching. The new buildings will add almost 90,000 sq.m. to the existing premises area, while the university is vacating roughly 45,000 sq.m. of its existing tenancies. The projects have been commissioned by Akademiska Hus, a company specialising in knowledge environments and Sweden’s largest landlord for higher education.
7
“Attractive research environments for an expanding university” Karolinska Institutet is a central part of the life-science cluster that is now growing around the new university hospital in Solna. This is why we’re investing in new buildings now, as it’s a natural part of the expansion of the emerging Hagastaden district. One of the reasons why we’re doing this is that many of the building we currently occupy are old and outdated. We’re also outgrowing them and we simply need more space. We also want to get closer to the university hospital in order to promote translational research. Another objective is to gather similar activities under one roof so that we can work together and share costly research equipment. This will also encourage spontaneous interaction between researchers from different fields, which doesn’t happen when everyone sits in different buildings, as is the case today. The new buildings will also give us more functional premises for experimental research and thus raise the quality of our research infrastructure. And getting even more attractive research environments certainly doesn’t harm our recruitment potential. Having the new, large buildings located along the Solnavägen main road will also make the university more visible to passers-by. We operate at the hub of society and work with many different actors, so we have to be visible and accessible to both the general public and prospective students. To attract students and researchers, we’re also developing the learning environments and the inner campus, turning it into a pleasant, leafy and pedestrian-friendly place to walk around in. Rune Fransson, director of innovation and infrastructure at Karolinska Institutet
8
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
9
The green inner campus The university’s campus is to get a new city profile with high buildings and modern facades. The new buildings tie the campus to the city, contributing to the image of Karolinska Institutet as a vibrant, urban university. All this without compromising the original character of the campus. Preserving the campus core To retain the university’s inner environment with its low, red-brick buildings in a park-like setting, the new buildings with their modern architectonic idiom are located along the campus periphery, closer to the new university
10
hospital. The adjacent extant buildings help to soften the impact of the large scale against the small in the heart of the campus. Green areas with open meeting places will enhance the mood of the central campus, and the grounds around the new developments will be landscaped to blend
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
“An urban university where old and new meet” The outlying parts of the Solna Campus are expanding and changing thanks principally to the infrastructure investments being made. While we’re adding new buildings, we’re keeping the small-scale feel of the central campus so that people can still feel at home there. These parts of the campus will retain their “green and redbrick” feel; in fact, we’ll be making the green parts even more prominent. Another thing we’re working with is the pathways, which we’ll be enhancing so as to make it easier to navigate the campus. The new “Akademiska stråket”, with a bridge over Solnavägen, will be a main artery between Karolinska Institutet and the university hospital. These days, people want proximity and compactness, so we’ve had to think along new architectural lines. Our intention is to make these large structures feel light despite their volumes. We therefore opted for a lot of glass in the facades, which provides vital daylight illumination to the interiors. The idea is for the buildings to stick out and profile the university. In having the original red-brick buildings and the surrounding grassy areas reflected in the glass, the new buildings blend into the existing environment, and throw the older buildings, like Gammelgården, into sharper contrast. Old and new mutually reinforce each other in a positive way. Mårten Tiselius, M Sc Architect and property developer at Akademiska Hus.
in with the existing surroundings. Parking areas will be located to the outer zones, to make the campus a pleasant and safe area to walk in. Walkway between campus and hospital To ease passage between the campus area and the new hospital, a walkway has been planned. Called “Akademiska stråket”, it will stretch over Solnavägen between the two institutions, and tie together public spaces, park areas and academic departments.
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
11
“The Home Away From Home concept creates spaces for students to meet, exchange ideas and learn from each other. A social arena where students’ needs are in the spotlight.” Eva Falk, Architect SIR/MSA, Tengbom
Future learning environments The students currently lack social and informal study spaces next to the lecture halls. With its Future Learning Environments project, Karolinska Institutet will be improving and renovating existing learning environments. Inspirational and functional study environments The spaces around the lecture halls and other common study spaces are being renovated and refurnished for socialising, group work and self-study. Teaching rooms and other study rooms are also being improved. Parts of the project are being undertaken in association with the
12
Stockholm County Council. Two firms of architects, White and Tengbom, were invited to present proposals for how the existing environments could be made more conducive to study. Tengbom won the contract to create a more vibrant student environment using ideas developed by White. The idea of the concept is to make the students feel at home on campus.
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
“Pleasant environments are important to the students” The concept that we drew up with the architects is called “Home away from home”. What we wanted was to create homely student spaces on campus – given the amount of time we spend here, it’s actually like a second home for us. The spaces outside the lecture halls aren’t just to serve as corridors that people just pass through. Pleasant environments are important for students – when we’re not in lectures, this is where we sit. The environments around the lecture halls at Berzelius väg 3 consist of a collection of elements reflecting the various rooms found in the home. For example, the biowall represents the garden and the furniture in the corridor creates the mood of a living room, a sitting room and a lobby. The unique thing about the interior design is that the versatile furnishings allow students to create small, private spaces in large areas. At the same time, all spaces are integrated by the common aims of the users: to socialise, study and learn from each other. It’s great that so much effort is being put into the student environments. It’s not just the students who benefit but the entire university. It’s a big investment in the KI brand, which is especially important for attracting international students. Axel Dahlstedt, student on the dentistry study programme, who has been involved in the work around the design concept for the Future Learning Environments
A homely meeting area at the Solna CampuS The first learning environment that was renovated according to the architect-designed interior concept was the spaces between the lecture halls at Berzelius väg 3 on the Solna Campus, popularly known as BZ. The endresult was a radically refreshed and light space with a
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
homely feeling, with plenty of seeting and separated areas for studies and socialising. Similar projects will be undertaken on the Huddinge Campus, at Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm South General and Danderyd hospital.
13
Map of the Solna Campus
KI S
TOMT
EBOD
AVÄ G
EN
R E T Z I U S VÄ G
KAROLINSKA INSTITUTET’S LIBRARY
NO BE LS VÄ
AKADEMISKA STRÅKET
G
ESSIN
14
GELED
EN
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
SCIENCE PARK
”FOLKHÄLSOHUSET”
TECHNICAL FACILITY
BIOMEDICUM
LECTURE HALL
RESEARCH FACILITY
THORAX SOL N AV N
ADMINISTRATION BUILDING
ISKA ST RÅKET
ÄGE
GAMMELGÅRDEN
AKADEM
HOTEL NOBEL FORUM NEW KAROLINSKA UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
15
“A white glass bowl dappled with gold, a triangular wooden latticework surrounding the world’s foremost lecturers.” Gert Wingårdh, Architect SAR/MSA, Wingårdh
16
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
Karolinska Institutet’s lecture hall complex Karolinska Institutet has a close, interactive relationship with the community. Seminars, lectures and symposia form a natural part of its activities. Despite this, the university has lacked its own premises in which to arrange public events, such as the Nobel Lectures, which attract people from all over the world. A 1,000-seat auditorium serves this purpose perfectly.
A long-awaited auditorium As far back as 1937 architect Ture Rydberg drew up plans for a lecture hall, his “Per Haps” proposal winning Karolinska Institutet’s architecture competition for future campus development. The plans were however shelved due to lack of funds. The new lecture hall, with the exception of the office and service facilities, has been fully financed by a private donation from the Erling-Persson Foundation. Opening up along Solnavägen Wingårdh Architects have designed the building, the form and geometry of which contrasts with the traditional lowrise brick buildings on the campus. With its geometric form and central location opposite the new hospital, it will open up the university to the main public thoroughfare and the city.
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
When the lecture hall complex is completed in the summer of 2013 it will house a 1,000-seat auditorium, office space for some 90 staff and restaurants. The total premises area will be around 10,000 sq.m., so there will be plenty of room for Nobel Lectures, scientific symposia, gala receptions and conferences to be held here. Energy-efficient building An environmental programme has been produced by Akademiska Hus to ensure a green build and energyefficient solutions. For example, the carcass of the building comprises triangular elements that form an airtight, energy-lean façade.
17
“An auditorium to be proud of” Karolinska Institutet’s beautiful and unusual lecture hall complex will lend new character to the Solna Campus, with its unmissable rounded, irregular forms and overhang over Solnavägen. The auditorium itself will seat 1,000 people and has been designed by Gert Wingårdh, one of Sweden’s foremost architects. We have watched the building emerge over the past year. A certain degree of incursion into the existing environment was necessary and while it might seem sad to abandon the old to make way for something new and unknown, without change there can be no development. In the space of 200 years, Karolinska Institutet has gone from an academy for army surgeons to one of the world’s leading medical universities. The journey has been long and has meant a lot of changes over the decades – all of which have been essential to our success as a university. We know that it is in the interaction of minds that things happen. The exchange of knowledge and ideas breeds innovation and creativity; but for this to occur, people need places to meet. Now, at last, we have a unique and modern meeting place adapted to the needs of the future. The new auditorium is therefore both a long-awaited and essential prerequisite for our future growth. Here, researchers, students and the general public can gather for all manner of events, from fascinating lectures on the latest medical research to the training of tomorrow’s careworkers. It goes without saying that we must build an auditorium to be proud of; most important of all, however, is the content that will fill it. So let us use it for activities that stimulate debate, knowledge exchanges and creative meetings, and that help us to achieve our mission – to improve human health. Harriet Wallberg-Henriksson, President at Karolinska Institutet
18
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
19
“Four blocks embraced by a transparant shell, forming a hive of world-class scientific activity.” Bo Lidberg, Berg/C. F. Møller Architects
Biomedicum – the laboratory of the future Experimental research at Karolinska Institutet is expanding, and with it the need of greater laboratory capacity and more effective premises. Karolinska Institutet is therefore planning to build a highly specialised research laboratory, which with its 55,000 sq. m. of premises space will be one if Europe’s largest. Space for 1,700 people The research laboratory Biomedicum will be located near the lecture hall complex and in conjunction with the new hospital. The laboratory will bring together the activities of separate disciplines, with space for approximately 1,700
20
researchers and other personnel. Amongst Biomedicum’s occupants will be the departments of Cell and Molecular Biology, Physiology and Pharmacology, Microbiology, Tumour and Cell Biology, Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, and Neuroscience.
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
“Interaction benefits research” I think it’s fantastic that Karolinska Institutet is investing in new infrastructure. The idea of gathering all experimental research under one and the same roof was hatched just a few years ago, so things have moved from vision to reality very quickly. It’s a great leap for the university’s research that departments that are currently scattered around the campus in a dozen different buildings will be tied together physically. This will make interaction between research scientists from different departments much easier and stimulate dynamic, continual change in the groups’ compositions. We will also find it easier to integrate with the clinics given that the new hospital will be so close by. This will benefit both our basic research and our translational research. Practically speaking, we’ll be able to share research infrastructure more effectively. Much of the equipment requires special expertise to operate, so if our investment is to be worthwhile we need to make it as accessible as possible. And given that we can be more efficient at using our labs and sharing equipment, we can cut down on space. I hope that our place in Biomedicum will mean that we can deepen and improve our research so that we can be even more successful on the global stage.
Christer Höög, head of the Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, one of the departments that will be moving in to Biomedicum
Closer interaction In bringing the scientific activities of separate departments together, the new laboratory will provide the university with a unique point of intersection for crossover, multi-disciplinary research and collaboration. Biomedicum will contain many meeting places and a core of shared facilities that will allow the more effective use of costly equipment and provide opportunities to greatly enhance research in the medical field. It will also contribute to the development of Stockholm Life as one of the world’s preeminent life-science regions.
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
Functional and accessible With their strong proposal offering flexible, accessible and functional working environments, Berg/C.F. Møller Architects were selected to design Biomedicum. Construction work is expected to commence in 2013, with completion scheduled for 2018.
21
“With clean, honest materials, a dynamic form and decorative façade, the new building will be an imposing portal opening the Solna Campus to the community and the city.” Sanna Hederus, Architect MSA, KOD Architects
The Public Health Block – a new office and education block An office block for public health and education is slowly emerging at the northern end of the Solna Campus at the junction of Solnavägen and Tomtebodavägen.
Improved conditions for public health work The building, which goes under the working name of ”Folkhälsohuset” (the Public Health Block), is intended to provide better facilities mainly for the university’s public
22
health activities. It will be completed in December 2012, and will house the Department of Learning, Informatics, Management and Ethics, the Department of Public Health Sciences and the Institute for Communicable Disease.
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
“Flexible teaching rooms make for creative learning processes” Getting new, airy teaching rooms will give us all a lift, teachers as well as students. The rooms will also be flexibly furnished so that the tables can be rearranged for different purposes and lessons. This, I hope, will allow more interactive and creative teaching, in which the students are present and active in their knowledge acquisition. If we’re to build a creative learning process, we must get away from the classic, theatre-like lecture hall setup where the students just sit and listen. Because the rooms can be quickly rearranged to create, say, small islands for group discussion, the continuity of the teaching will not be interrupted, as can happen when the students disperse into separate rooms. All in all, our activities will take up five different storeys. The teaching will be located in the shared teaching rooms on the entrance floor, and the students will be able to use the informal learning spaces and meeting places on the second floor. The presence of other departments in the building will stimulate interaction between students and staff. This will create an innovative and creative environment, not least for the students. I’m really looking forward to moving into the new premises, I can’t wait! Hannele Moisio, lecturer at the Department of Learning, Informatics, Management and Ethics (LIME), one of the departments that will be moving in to the new office block
A two-block building The narrow structure, designed by KOD Architects, consists of two blocks: a seven-storey one along Tomtebodavägen and a taller ten-storey one along Solnavägen. With its premises space over 15,000 sq. m., the building will house some 600 offices and teaching rooms.
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
Red brick and glass for tradition and openness The red bricks used in the building’s facade are set into concrete elements, echoing the traditional red-brick look of the original campus. The two lower floors of the block are largely glazed, making it possible for passers-by to see activities being carried on within. These two storeys are conceived as spaces for student interaction, education and meetings. An original concrete artwork by Kristina Matousch will grace the ground floor.
23
“A large building complex divided into three oval buildings adds a softness to the architecture and offers uninterrupted views of the lush, verdant backdrop.” Jon Tvedt, Architect SAR/MSA, SWECO Architects
Gamma – the third block in Karolinska Institutet Science Park The Alfa, Beta and Gamma blocks comprise the Karolinska Institutet Science Park (KISP). Several life-science companies are based here, and it is a node of research collaboration for four of the country’s top universities. Research meets business Amongst the Karolinska Institutet Science Park occupants are Swedish Orphan Biovitrum – one of Europe’s largest biomed companies – and Science for Life Laboratory, a collaborative venture between Stockholm University, Karolinska Institutet, the Royal Institute of Technology
24
and Uppsala University. The first two KISP blocks, Alfa and Beta, were completed in 2010. The third and tallest block, Gamma, is due for occupancy in mid 2013. In total, the three blocks cover around 25,000 sq.m., of which Karolinska Institutet leases two-thirds.
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
“New ideas are hatched in the meeting of great minds” Gathering Karolinska Institutet’s entire innovation system into one building is a very positive change. The companies will be located along the outer edges of the structures, while their inner part will consist of an open forum for spontaneous meetings. This means that we’ll be able to work more closely with each other and make optimal use of our specific knowledge and financial resources. On the ground floor there’ll be a conference centre and a showroom where we can exhibit innovations and products produced at Karolinska Institutet, and where our companies can also profile themselves. Everyone working in the building will enter through the same entrance, which means that everyone will pass through the atrium to get to their offices. The atrium, which will also house a café, will provide yet another place for the employees and visitors of Karolinska Institutet Science Park to meet. All told, there’ll be about 800 talented people working at Karolinska Institutet Science Park, and it’s in the meeting of these great minds that new ideas will be hatched. Hopefully, larger biotech and drugs companies will eventually move in here, so that they can take over the projects from the small companies and bring them to the market. Märit Johansson, CEO of Karolinska Institutet Science Park (KISP), which will be moving into Gamma
Linked blocks The three buildings all have the same modern, characteristic oval design. They each have a central passageway, and are linked together by a two-storey entrance block, called Delta. The buildings were designed by SWECO Architects.
laboratories for biomedical research companies. The plan is for multiple research companies to operate on the same building level, which places special demands on functionality, accessibility and security. Flexibility is a keyword – the buildings are conceived as being adaptable to the wishes of the tenants or the demands of certain research.
Flexible facilities for science and education The KISP blocks are a natural part of the campus and have been designed to provide modern premises and top-class
CAMPUS IN DEVELOPMENT
25
Further information www.ki.se/campusiforandring www.akademiskahus.se/campussolna
Design and production: The Information and Public Relations Office at Karolinska Institutet, in association with Akademiska Hus Stockholm Photographs: Akademiska Hus, Berg/C.F. Møller Architects, Bosse Johansson, Camilla Svensk, Erik G Svensson, KOD Arkitekter, Marcus Erixon, Mats Bengtsson, Pierre Zoetterman, Stefan Zimmerman, Ulf Sirborn, Wingürdh Arkitektkontor Map: Super Print: Arkitektkopia ISBN: 978-91-85681-43-3