What is unique here?

Stockholm Life Solna-Stockholm is a life science arena which is integrated in the city! Here you find a knowledge-intensive cluster in a country and a region which have an internationally strong life science muscle and which is now becoming a leading area with a focus on health.

Within a diameter of 2 kilometers, Stockholm Life Solna-Stockholm offers three leading universities, leading healthcare providers, a dense life science industry tissue and internationally relevant research infrastructure, to name a few.

Academia, industry and healthcare

Within a diameter of 2 kilometers, Stockholm Life Solna-Stockholm offers:

A strong academic presence – Sweden’s largest medical university (Karolinska Institutet), natural sciences’ faculty (Stockholm University) and technical university (KTH Royal Institute of Technology). Together, these institutions have 47 000 full-time students and 4 000 researchers.
Leading healthcare providers – Karolinska University Hospital in Solna. The construction of the New Karolinska Solna – a highly specialised hospital which will provide healthcare with the patient in the center of all work processes – was initiated in September 2010.


NKS. The hospital will be inaugurated in 2016/2017 (Tengbom/Skanska/Nya Karolinska Solna)

Strong industry concentration – around 60 companies with a life science focus established within Stockholm Life Solna-Stockholm.

Authorities

Two central authorities in the medical area are located within Stockholm Life Solna-Stockholm: the Smittskyddsinstitutet (Swedish Institute for Communicable Disease Control) and The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

Research projects and infrastructure

Internationally relevant research projects and infrastructure are also located here – e.g. Stockholm Brain Institute, Human Protein Atlas, Stockholm Center for Biomembrane Research, Karolinska Trial Alliance, Science for Life Laboratory, LifeGene, COMBINE, Stockholm School of Entrepreneurship, Life science imaging at KTH-Karolinska.

National and regional context

Stockholm Life Solna-Stockholm is a hub in a knowledge-leading country and region – both with a long tradition and a strong business performance within life science.

The laser surgery, the pacemaker and the dialysis are only a few examples of Swedish innovations which have improved and prolonged the lives of millions of people around the world. Exports from the Swedish pharmaceutical industry were as high as 68 MSEK during 2009 (more than the double of passenger vehicles during the same year). In Europe only three countries (England, France and Germany) have more life science companies than Sweden. In relation to the population, this concentration is stronger in Sweden than in all other countries.

The Stockholm-Uppsala region (i.e. Uppsala, Strängnäs and the greater Stockholm area including Södertälje, Flemingsberg and Solna) has more than 570 life science companies, which together have a turnover of approximately 125 MSEK. The industry in the region employs more than 23 000 people, which correspond to 60% of Sweden’s life science workforce.

Part of the city

Stockholm Life Solna-Stockholm refers to the life science activities in Hagastaden. This new area is located in Stockholm’s centre and near the quietness of the Royal National City Park.

Karolinskaplan with Vetenskapshuset on the right (Illustration: The City Planning Administration, City of Stockholm)

Hagastaden - where Stockholm and Solna meet - has integrated communication, as it is located within short distance to Arlanda and Bromma airports, Stockholm Central Station and public transport connections.

To learn more about Hagastaden, download an information brochure from the City of Stockholm or visit www.hagastaden.se (in Swedish).