Timber construction can be further developed and become more resource-efficient, sustainable and competitive if one utilizes the strength of different frame systems that are joined and optimized when larger and more complex buildings are to be built. It would mean a new toolbox for architects and designers to start from, which provides new opportunities for designing and optimizing the load-bearing frame.

Traditionally, today's hospitals are built in concrete and steel. Using timber in the frame is still a challenge as there is a lack of both familiarity and established guidelines. Demands to change towards more sustainable construction are increasing, but still cannot be justified to use unproven technology in hospital projects.

The project evaluates the requirements that exist for different types of operations in a hospital from a timber construction perspective. Possibilities and challenges for timber construction are mapped in parallel with the cases where it is not possible to use timber. Based on the challenge of building a hospital with a timber frame, a fictitious and limited design exercise is carried out to test the design and construction of a hospital by combining different existing timber building systems.

The title of the application at Vinnova The Optimized Complex Wooden Structures of the Future.  The project working title in progress HiT - Health in Timber. 

We find and attract funding together with the company, but also offer unique capacity in the form of expertise and test beds. In this way, we reduce the time to launch, lower the risk and help create competitive companies for an international market.

The offer is particularly strong in climate-tech which includes but is not limited to sustainable energy and energy storage, future food and agriculture, new materials and circular solutions within bioeconomy. We also work closely with the most innovative companies in HealthTech and DeepTech. 

Guidance and support through the funding landscape

For innovation within ClimateTech, HealthTech and DeepTech, there is a very extensive financing landscape, which can, however, be difficult for the individual company to orientate within. RISE offers guidance to the right financing tools and acts as an advisor in the preparation of applications for public support, and in some situations can also facilitate guidance to private investors.

The type of soft funding available depends on the stage of maturity.

• In the very early stages, there are smaller calls (0.3-0.5 MSEK), often with a high level of support (100%)
• When the company is ready to verify its solution with the customer, there are slightly larger calls (3-5 MSEK), often with a 50% level of support
• For some types of innovations, such as various industrial solutions, large-scale demonstration is required, which can be very capital-intensive - here it is possible to apply for very large grants, often with a 45% level of support

Leading technical expertise and test beds

RISE's leading expertise facilitates the development journey towards commercialisation and industrialisation. Supported by our infrastructure, our experts complement and fill in capacity gaps in the company that is about to take its next development step. Quite simply, RISE can act as the link between the laboratory and the industrial environment. For many innovative companies, it is critical to leave the lab as quickly as possible, start working on a small industrial scale and test their solution in a real-life environment.

RISE also has a central role in the innovation system with a broad network in academia, industry and society and can therefore provide companies with valuable guidance. With our broad  industry contacts, RISE can be the link between innovative start-ups/scale-ups, industrial players and large companies for the further development of new smart and radical solutions.

"As an early-stage start-up, we could not afford our own infrastructure and therefore access to an experienced technical partner like RISE Processum was highly valuable for initial process development and scale-up activities. This was essential to validate our biorefinery process for customers, partners and investors" - Thomas Baumgarten, CTO & Co-founder, Reselo AB

How does the support process work?

• Initial counselling meeting with RISE to review the company's innovative solution, how far the company has come from various perspectives and what their next development step looks like
• Based on this, we identify the most appropriate type or mix of funding, such as various public calls, EU funding or equity capital. We also look at whether development capacity, such as expertise or access to test beds, is lacking to enable the company to take its next development step
• This is followed by a number of meetings to ensure that the company fulfils the criteria for a specific call and that the activities in the implementation plan are eligible
• We also connect the company with relevant experts and test beds within RISE, which are needed for further development

Contacts

Welcome to contact us:

RISE's cutting-edge expertise in food technology, process technology and product development combined with the facility's process equipment and analysis and characterization resources creates a large-scale and multidisciplinary environment for both improving existing manufacturing and developing new products.

In addition to process technology, RISE has broad expertise in sensory and consumer science, aroma chemistry, structure and texture, nutrition and microbiology, which enables comprehensive support throughout product development.

Food processing techniques

Extraction & separation

• Wet extraction of protein, starch, fiber and fat

• Separating systems such as decanter centrifuge for separation of particles from liquid fractions.

• Super critical CO2 extraction (for volatile components such fats for antioxidants)

Drying

• Spray drying

• Freezing drying

Wet and dry extrusion

• Double and single screw extruders

Dry mixing

· Blender

Homogenization

· Homogenisor

Baking equipment

· Proving cabinet

· Rotating oven

· Dough blender

· Rolling pin machine

Charkuterie manufacturing

· Bowl chopper

· Meat grinder

· Sausage manufacturing

Heat and separation techniques

· Specially designed microwave oven drying and heating with online control measurements

· PEF - Pulsed Electric Field

· Ultra sound equipment

Collaboration

The facility is used for commissioned research, contract testing and joint R&D projects. Both shorter tests and longer development projects are possible.

Contact us for further dialogue about how our expert team can help you go from idea to market-adapted solution.

Aim

By measuring sensory, instrumental (e.g. microstructure and texture) and behavioral aspects of meat analogs (prototypes) with varying amounts and types of fat, the project aimed at contributing to increased understanding of how fat can influence acceptance and taste experiences of meat analogs in a positive direction, which is an important step in the development of sustainable and tasty plant-based protein products that can replace meat.

Challanges

The vegetable fats used in many meat analogues today are largely unsaturated fats, compared to the fats in land-based animals. Unsaturated fats generally have health benefits over saturated fats, but also have different sensory properties than saturated fats, as they are usually not solid in warm foods. It is well known that fat can affect the sensory experience of meat. However, less is known about how fat content and fat quality affect the acceptance and sensory experience of meat analogues.

A common method of making liquid vegetable fats more solid is so-called hydrogenation. When hydrogenated, however, the healthy properties of the originally unsaturated vegetable fatty acids disappear, because they are then converted into saturated fatty acids by the addition of hydrogen. An interesting alternative to hydration, to create vegetable fats that are more solid at room temperature, are so-called oleogels. With oleogels, you can create gel-like fats, while maintaining the degree of unsaturation of the vegetable fats.

In the manufacture of certain plant-based meat analogues, the protein undergoes a so-called texturing, for example through extrusion, with the aim of creating a meat-like structure of the plant-based proteins. Usually, the fat in meat analogues is added after this process, i.e. after the protein structure has been formed. This can cause the fat in the final product to leak out during storage and cooking. Possibly this problem can be avoided if the fat is added before texturing, thus becoming more integrated into the product.

Consumers may have different expectations of how a food should behave during cooking, for example how well it retains its color and shape and how it behaves when additional ingredients or flavorings are added. Expectations may affect the overall acceptance of meat analogues. It is therefore relevant to study more closely consumers' experiences of cooking meat analogues, and to understand how these experiences can be improved from a product design perspective.

Solution

In this project we:

• Studied how different types and levels of vegetable fats affect the sensory profile and acceptability of commercially available plant-based meat analogues.
• Developed prototypes of meat analogues using different fat sources, including oleogels, where the fat is added before and after texturing.
• Evaluated the produced prototypes sensory using a trained panel.
• Measure and study the prototypes' physiochemical properties (e.g. microstructure and texture) instrumentally, which helps to explain the sensory experience and facilitate future product development.
• Qualitatively evaluated of how well the prototypes work and meet consumer expectations when cooking.

Publications 

Collier, E.S., van Huyssteen, G., Krona, A., Harris, K.L., Ahlinder, A., Normann, A., Bendtsen, M., Eckardt, J., 2025. “It’s not bad, but it’s not chicken”: Sensorial drivers of liking and their correlates for plant-based chicken analogues in Sweden. International Journal of Gastronomy and Food Science 41, 101229. 

Ahlinder, A., Lorén, N., Hemeryck, A., Lindroth, S., Altskär, A., Krona, A., Eckardt, J., 2026. The influence of wax-based oleogelators on microstructure evolution, rheology and diffusion. Food Hydrocolloids 171, 111739.