Innovation initiatives in western Sweden strengthen Sweden's resilience

From faster food testing and methods for freeing up electricity grid capacity to strengthened spare parts manufacturing within total defense. This year's Impact Report shows how innovation initiatives in West Sweden contribute to both competitiveness and strengthened resilience.

“Innovation is not a side issue in social development, but rather crucial to Sweden’s competitiveness and resilience. Our Impact Report clearly shows why it is important and profitable in the long term to invest in the work done by science parks and incubators,” says Linda Bohlin Trajkovski, CEO of Innovatum Science Park.

Innovatum Science Park is currently one of Sweden's largest science parks, working to bring together companies and organizations from different sectors to solve current societal challenges and contribute to a long-term, competitive business sector. In 2025, the park ran 53 innovation projects with a total turnover of SEK 181 million.

Strengthened spare parts manufacturing within total defense

One example is the Advanced Manufacturing Coordination Center (AMCC) collaboration project, which was inaugurated at the Production Technology Center in Trollhättan in October.

Here, the Swedish Armed Forces are collaborating with GKN Aerospace, University West, the City of Trollhättan, WAABLABZ, and Innovatum Science Park to build new capabilities in advanced 3D printing. The goal is to enable rapid and sustainable production of components and spare parts, even when supply chains are disrupted.

– It's about more than technology. Together, we are building capabilities that create the conditions for more secure supply chains, says Linda. 

Smart control creates space in the electricity grids

In the energy sector, work is underway to free up capacity in existing electricity grids through smart control and collaboration. One example is Living Lab Trollhättan, where the electricity system of the future has been tested in a real-world environment in a way that has never been done before, either in Sweden or globally.

"The results from Living Lab Trollhättan show that it is possible to dramatically reduce power consumption. By using infrastructure more efficiently, companies can grow and transform without waiting for extensive network expansion. This approach is a scalable concept for more cities and industrial areas," Linda continues. 

Faster testing strengthens the food chain

The report also highlights several innovative startups that receive support from Innovatum Science Park's incubator. One of them is Mareld, which uses new technology to reduce the analysis time for food testing by up to 90 percent.