New Manufacturing Innovation Hub Opens in Billund

A new global manufacturing innovation center recently opened in Billund, Denmark, to unify engineering, research, and production under one roof. The facility accelerates the transition from product concept to large-scale manufacturing by housing specialists in a collaborative environment. This project strengthens the regional industrial network while testing new building materials and sustainable energy systems.

The development creates a sprawling 100,000-square-meter manufacturing complex by integrating a new 22,000-square-meter structure with an existing factory. The scheme serves as a central hub for a worldwide production network, allowing engineers and researchers to work alongside manufacturing specialists. This proximity ensures that new product ideas move efficiently through development, testing, and final production stages.

The facility includes several specialized zones to support different phases of the industrial process. A dedicated materials lab researches sustainable raw materials to replace fossil fuel-based plastics. Meanwhile, an additive manufacturing center explores 3D printing technologies to refine product development. These technical spaces sit alongside a training academy designed to teach future generations of tool makers and plastic specialists.

Integrating Mass Timber and Renewable Energy

The design utilizes a mass timber structure—a system of engineered wood panels and beams that stores carbon within the building frame. This choice significantly reduces the overall carbon footprint of the construction compared to traditional steel or concrete methods. The project targets LEED Platinum certification, the highest rating for environmental performance in buildings.

Energy resilience plays a central role in the campus operations. A nearby 4 MW solar park currently provides partial power to the site. The team is also developing a much larger 80–100 MW solar park to match the total energy consumption of the regional facilities in the future. Rainwater management systems and energy-efficient climate controls further enhance the building’s operational performance.

Spatial Sequence and Workforce Integration

The interior reorganization accommodates approximately 1,800 employees from engineering, quality control, and manufacturing teams. The team designed the architecture to balance openness with the strict confidentiality required for industrial research. Shared workspaces and learning environments provide a circulation hierarchy that encourages spontaneous interaction between different departments.

Later this year, the campus will expand its public role by opening a specialized laboratory for visitors and students. This space will showcase the brand’s technical history and its progress toward using more sustainable materials. Key features throughout the site, including displays of historic tools and large-scale symbolic elements, reinforce the connection between the company’s heritage and its future technical goals.

Programmatic Intelligence and Material Resolution

The project demonstrates high programmatic intelligence by consolidating fragmented industrial processes into a singular, cohesive campus. By utilizing a mass timber envelope for an industrial program, the design challenges the standard reliance on carbon-intensive materials for manufacturing plants. The spatial sequence prioritizes the relationship between the laboratory and the factory floor, creating a feedback loop that speeds up technical troubleshooting. This structural clarity allows the building to function as both a high-tech research facility and a heavy-duty production site. The material resolution, characterized by wood and glass, softens the industrial atmosphere while maintaining the precision required for advanced engineering and tool manufacturing.

✦ ArchUp Editorial Insight

The Kornmarken Campus represents a sophisticated synthesis of corporate heritage and modern sustainability mandates. By housing engineering and production within a mass timber frame, the project elevates the industrial typology from a utilitarian shed to a refined architectural instrument. This spatial consolidation optimizes the feedback loop between research and output, turning the building itself into a tool for innovation. However, a tension exists between the narrative of transparency and the operational reality of industrial secrecy. While the design promotes collaboration through open plans, the strict confidentiality requirements of product development necessarily dictate a controlled, inward-facing environment. This duality reveals the challenge of creating a truly public-facing manufacturing hub while maintaining the competitive isolation essential to global corporate production.