New university building in Gothenburg to strengthen scientific cooperation

In the new Natrium building on Medicinareberget in central Gothenburg in southwestern Sweden, emphasis has been placed on creating a cohesive campus that promotes cooperation across research and educational institutions.

In August 2023 the new Natrium building was completed at Medicinareberget, the University of Gothenburg’s life sciences hub. The 32,000 m2 laboratory and research building brings together approximately 3,000 students and 500–600 employees from the University of Gothenburg's Faculty of Science under one roof.

In building Natrium, the focus was on simplifying interaction and promoting cooperation between the Faculty of Science’s various institutions and creating a cohesive campus together with the Faculty of Medicine and its research division at Sahlgrenska Academy. A central idea of Natrium's architecture was to create a connection to the existing Medicinarelängen building, which was designed by Klas Anshelm in the 1950s. In addition, there was a focus on creating a flexible research building that can be adapted to the changing needs of the academic laboratories.

Bright and welcoming atrium as a focal point

Natrium's facade consists of brick, bronze-coloured panels and glass. The building’s main entrance is connected to the Medicinarelängen, where parts of the existing building have been opened and rebuilt, and a new lunch restaurant connects the existing building with the new Natrium.

In the centre of the building is a bright and welcoming atrium that unites the two seven-storey sections of the building while also providing a central meeting place for students and staff.

Troldtekt acoustic panels adorn the ceilings in the reception area and corridors, and together with the building’s wooden materials, help to create a light and warm atmosphere that counterbalances the building’s white floor. At the same time, the reverberation of the large open space is absorbed, so students and staff can meet spontaneously or by appointment at one of the atrium’s meeting points, such as by the large staircase in the centre of the space or in the smaller meeting booths.  

On the ceilings of the open corridors on the different floors, the Troldtekt line design solution creates a visually uniform look with longitudinal grooves towards the centre of the atrium.