Official Opening of uptownBasel, the International Competence Center for Industry 4.0
On Thursday, 8 September 2022, the competence centre uptownBasel in Arlesheim (BL) was officially and festively opened together with the cantonal government and 150 guests from business, science and politics. Tenants include the European technology groups Bouygues E&S and VINCI Energies, with its brands Axians and Actemium, as well as, soon, the Straumann Group.
Over the course of around ten years, uptownBasel is becoming an incubator for innovation and technology transfer and a flagship project for sustainability — with nine buildings for 50 international companies and around 2,500 jobs on more than 70,000 square metres.
"While Swiss industry and international supply chains continue to face major pressure, the uptownBasel site strengthens value creation in the Basel region. That matters to me personally," says Thomas Staehelin, investor and Chairman of the Board of uptownBasel. Behind uptownBasel's vision stands the private ownership of the Monique and Thomas Staehelin family, with an investment of over CHF 500 million.
An opening ceremony with the cantonal government
The opening marks an important milestone for uptownBasel. Isaac Reber, Government Councillor of the Canton of Basel-Landschaft, and Ursula Laager, municipal councillor of Arlesheim, brought greetings on behalf of the canton and the municipality. Baschi Dürr, Director and CEO of uptownBasel, hosted the event and, in conversation with the tenant companies, gave insights into their co-creation process and how forward-looking ideas are brought to life together. "The sails are set. We've successfully gotten uptownBasel underway and are turning the vision into reality step by step," says architect and site developer Hans-Jörg Fankhauser.
"The Pioneer" makes the vision tangible
The first building, "The Pioneer," with around 40,000 m² of floor space, impresses with a sustainable, modular usage concept and is practically fully leased. Its rooftop terrace is a popular meeting spot for employees and is home to many native plant species — making the building the first proof point for uptownBasel's ambitious goals around sustainability and collaboration.
Globally connected, regionally rooted
uptownBasel is historically deeply rooted in the region and is committed to realising the project carefully and in close coordination with all stakeholders. Clear confirmation of this came in March 2022, when the "Untere Weiden II" district plan — the basis for uptownBasel's construction — was approved by Arlesheim's municipal assembly by a clear vote of 144 to 20. With its proximity to the city of Basel as well as to Germany and France, the location is ideally suited for an international network.
Security Operations Center against cybercrime
The opening ceremony also offered exclusive insights into the Security Operations Center (SOC) run by Axians and Actemium — a centre unique in Europe for defending against cyberattacks on IT and OT infrastructure. At the SOC in uptownBasel, all networked sensors, machines, plants and devices are monitored, and international collaboration between regional SOCs in Germany, the Czech Republic and other European countries is coordinated.
Next construction phase: the energy centres
The next buildings in the construction process are the two energy centres for electricity and heat. The heat centre is the heart of Primeo Energie's operations, using the site's waste heat and biomass to generate heat. In the "Wärmeverbund Birsstadt," 25 existing heating plants and networks in the Birstal are being consolidated and converted to renewable energy — making the network independent of natural gas.
