Health and care incubator in Diepenbeek gets brand new wing
BioVille strengthens its position in BioTech, MedTech and Digital Health
BioVille – the health and care incubator on the university campus in Diepenbeek -, its shareholders – LRM, POM Limburg and UHasselt -, Flemish Minister of Economy, Innovation, Work, Social Economy and Agriculture Jo Brouns and Deputy for the Economy Tom Vandeput, officially announce the start of the construction of a new, third wing. The 2,000m² expansion, specifically aimed at scale-ups, is intended to strengthen BioVille’s position as a frontrunner in BioTech, MedTech and Digital Health. The new wing consists of three floors and aims to further expand the ecosystem with healthcare organisations and companies that will develop new healthcare applications there. The new building will be ready for use by summer 2023. The new wing calls for a total investment of €4,319,503.59. The funds come from ERDF, LRM and the province of Limburg.
Room for growth
The new wing at BioVille will further facilitate the acceleration of innovative care and additional developments in BioTech, MedTech and Digital Health. The focus is on growth companies in need of additional infrastructure.
With the new wing, the health and care incubator responds to companies’ demand for additional office space, lab space and meeting facilities. The user is central. Therefore, the floors are delivered as shells so that each company can opt for a customised layout according to its needs. The new wing will have a central reception and companies based there will have the opportunity to use BioVille’s support services.
Business district
“BioVille, already the economic beating heart of the site, aims to grow further into a dynamic business district, all within the wider context of the Health Campus,” said Tom Vanham, General Manager of LRM. “This brand new wing fits that ambition. Additional spaces, laboratories and other facilities will be added in the future to attract not only startups and scale-ups, but also larger health and care companies to the site. We are also reaching out to all healthcare sector actors to strengthen the existing ecosystem. Connections with imec and academia such as UHasselt are already in place, and there is also already a lot of interaction with BioVille’s existing projects and initiatives. There are many opportunities for collaboration or cross-fertilisation on the horizon that will only benefit this new project. BioVille is also part of the incubator network that LRM has developed with partners in Limburg.”
ERDF project
“Over the past 10 years, Limburg has been strongly committed to expanding the Health and Care sector,” says Jo Brouns, Flemish Minister of Economy, Innovation, Work, Social Economy and Agriculture. “Innovation and growth are an absolute priority here. BioVille has been facilitating acceleration in healthcare for years and with this new wing it offers the industry even more opportunities for training, research and development, manufacturing, living lab environments and internationalisation. In 2020, BioVille also opened the doors of the Digital Health House, another project created in part with ERDF support. By continuing to innovate and expand its facilities and offerings, BioVille creates an ideal breeding ground for companies and organisations building the healthcare of tomorrow.”
“POM Limburg has outlined an ambitious future plan for the university campus in 2021. The campus will be a crossroads of innovation, entrepreneurship and talent development,” said Deputy for the Economy Tom Vandeput, also Chairman of NV Wetenschapspark Limburg. “The Health Campus is an essential part of this. This campus will be a large-scale innovation and demonstration centre for the care of the future. Step by step, we are realising a strong ecosystem with innovative research projects, new infrastructure and space for innovative companies. These may be located in a yet to be developed area behind Bioville or in the incubator itself. The third wing will already be an additional asset for companies active in healthcare digitisation. The province is therefore contributing 500,000 euros to the investment cost.”
The total investment amounts to EUR 4,319,503.59 and is part of the ERDF project of further development of BioVille. Besides European support, the project is being realised with funds from LRM and the Province of Limburg. Planning permission was issued in 2021. The third wing was designed by DBV Architects, with contractor Edibo nv responsible for the actual construction.