Foundation stone laid for new research institute in Allschwil

The new ALL laboratory building is being constructed on the Main Campus of the Switzerland Innovation Park Basel Area in Allschwil in the canton of Basel-Landschaft. The anchor tenant is the international Botnar Institute for Immune Engineering. ALL will be completed in 2027 and will further enhance the life sciences cluster Basel Area.

News

October 31, 20246 min read

Speeches at the laying of the foundation stone by Johannes Eisenhut, CEO Senn Development, Domenico Scala, President Switzerland Innovation Park Basel Area, Stephen Wilson, CEO Botnar Institute of Immune Engineering, and Pierre de Meuron, architect Herzog & de Meuron (from left to right) (image: David Walter, Senn)

The foundation stone has been laid for construction of the new ALL laboratory building on the Main Campus of the Switzerland Innovation Park Basel Area, which is based in Allschwil and is operated by Basel Area Business & Innovation. According to a press release, the structure will be ready for occupancy in 2027.

The anchor tenant is the independent, not-for-profit, global Botnar Institute for Immune Engineering (BIIE), which was opened in June 2024. It is dedicated to researching the immune system of young people and will receive 1 billion US dollars from Foundation Botnar based in Basel over 15 years. This is one of the largest contributions ever announced by a Swiss charitable trust.

One of the best life sciences ecosystems in Europe

“We sought a location for our institute that would completely meet the high standards of the world’s best researchers in immune engineering,” BIIE CEO Stephen Wilson commented. “The Main Campus of the Switzerland Innovation Park Basel Area is situated in one of the best life sciences ecosystems in Europe and in our view has turned out to be the best location in the world.”

After Main Campus HQ and Hortus, the new ALL building is the third Main Campus collaboration between the investor and real estate developer Senn and the Basel-based architects Herzog & de Meuron. It will span 20,500 square meters in area and meet the platinum standard for sustainable construction in Switzerland (SNBS).

President of the Switzerland Innovation Park Basel Area, Domenico Scala, stated that the BIIE on the Main Campus will further enhance the research location of Basel. He added: “Our work focuses on the exchange of knowledge at the Main Campus and having the BIIE on board is a huge asset.”