3XN has unveiled the new joint home of Universal Robots (UR) and Mobile Industrial Robots (MiR) in Odense, Denmark. The 215,000-sf project will enhance collaboration and employee well-being while offering highly specialized environments for robot research and development.
The new facility will group most of UR and MiR’s activities, which are currently spread across five different addresses in Odense, in one location, creating the world’s largest hub for cobots (collaborative robots that work and interact with humans).
Dubbed Cobot Hub, the facility comprises flexible modules tailored to the robotics companies’ specialized needs. "We have worked closely with the users of the building since the beginning of the process, and we have conducted many interviews to outline what the new building needs to deliver," said Audun Opdal, Architect and Senior Partner, 3XN, in a release. "A lot of different elements had to come together. The new building will house two independent companies that need everything from traditional office space to workshops, laboratories, and creative robot ‘playrooms,’ where the robots of the future are developed.”
The building’s modular approach provides a flexible framework that allows the building to be scaled up or down according to future needs. This means significant parts of the building’s structure and materials can be reshaped and reused.
Cobot Hub will include a green roof, open office landscapes, common areas, and amenity spaces where employees can meet informally across the two organizations and exchange knowledge and innovations. Atriums open the building up and create visibility and transparency, encouraging social interaction. A shared courtyard forms the heart of Cobot Hub and will become the center of social life on the campus.
The project is slated for completion in 2023.
Related Stories
University Buildings | Aug 7, 2023
Eight-story Vancouver Community College building dedicated to clean energy, electric vehicle education
The Centre for Clean Energy and Automotive Innovation, to be designed by Stantec, will house classrooms, labs, a library and learning center, an Indigenous gathering space, administrative offices, and multiple collaborative learning spaces.
Laboratories | Jul 10, 2023
U.S. Department of Agriculture opens nation’s first biosafety level 4 containment facility for animal disease research
Replacing a seven-decade-old animal disease center, the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility includes the nation’s first facility with biosafety containment capable of housing large livestock.
Laboratories | Jun 23, 2023
A New Jersey development represents the state’s largest-ever investment in life sciences and medical education
In New Brunswick, N.J., a life sciences development that’s now underway aims to bring together academics and researchers to work, learn, and experiment under one roof. HELIX Health + Life Science Exchange is an innovation district under development on a four-acre downtown site. At $731 million, HELIX, which will be built in three phases, represents New Jersey’s largest-ever investment in life sciences and medical education, according to a press statement.
University Buildings | May 17, 2023
New UC Irvine health sciences building supports aim to become national model for integrative health
The new College of Health Sciences Building and Nursing & Health Sciences Hall at the University of California Irvine supports the institution’s goal of becoming a national model for integrative health. The new 211,660-sf facility houses nursing, medical doctorate, pharmacy, philosophy, and public health programs in a single building.
Sustainability | May 11, 2023
Let's build toward a circular economy
Eric Corey Freed, Director of Sustainability, CannonDesign, discusses the values of well-designed, regenerative buildings.
BIM and Information Technology | May 8, 2023
3 ways computational tools empower better decision-making
NBBJ explores three opportunities for the use of computational tools in urban planning projects.
Mass Timber | May 1, 2023
SOM designs mass timber climate solutions center on Governors Island, anchored by Stony Brook University
Governors Island in New York Harbor will be home to a new climate-solutions center called The New York Climate Exchange. Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), The Exchange will develop and deploy solutions to the global climate crisis while also acting as a regional hub for the green economy. New York’s Stony Brook University will serve as the center’s anchor institution.
University Buildings | Apr 24, 2023
Solving complicated research questions in interdisciplinary facilities
University and life science project owners should consider the value of more collaborative building methods, close collaboration with end users, and the benefits of partners who can leverage sector-specific knowledge to their advantage.
Laboratories | Mar 9, 2023
5 laboratory design choices that accelerate scientific discovery
Stephen Blair, director of CannonDesign's Science & Technology Practice, identifies five important design strategies to make the most out of our research laboratories.
University Buildings | Feb 9, 2023
3 ways building design can elevate bold thinking and entrepreneurial cultures
Mehrdad Yazdani of CannonDesign shares how the visionary design of a University of Utah building can be applied to other building types.
