The Health Innovation Hub (HiH) has been shortlisted for the Commercial / Office / Hotel Building or Project category at the Scottish Design Awards 2026, celebrating some of Scotland’s most inspiring architecture, creativity, and design talent.

Located within Glasgow’s Riverside Innovation District, the Health Innovation Hub is the city’s first purpose-built laboratory and office building designed to bring together researchers, healthcare professionals, and innovative life science companies within one collaborative ecosystem. Designed by Hawkins\Brown for Kadans Science Partner, the project redefines what a contemporary science workplace can feel like, balancing the technical complexity of laboratory environments with the warmth, openness, and flexibility of a modern workspace.

At the centre of the building is a striking, light-filled atrium that acts as a social and visual heart for the development. Curved architectural forms, natural materials, and open breakout spaces create opportunities for connection and collaboration, encouraging the spontaneous interactions that help spark new ideas and innovation.

Our planting installations were designed to complement this human-centred approach, introducing biophilic elements that soften the highly technical environment and create moments of calm throughout the building. From bold feature planting within the atrium to welcoming greenery in communal spaces, the displays help reinforce wellbeing, comfort, and creativity within the workplace.

The project also demonstrates a strong commitment to adaptability and sustainability. Flexible laboratory-ready spaces allow future tenants to configure environments around evolving needs, while low-carbon materials, active design principles, and integrated wellbeing features contributed to the building achieving BREEAM Excellent and WiredScore Platinum certifications.

The Scottish Design Awards 2026 will take place on Wednesday 24 June 2026 at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Glasgow, recognising outstanding work shaped by Scotland’s people, places, and culture.