Ecosystem in the making

A campus is never built through bricks alone; it grows by creating an environment that attracts people, inspires them and brings organisations together. For Lex Boon, Business Development Director at the Health Innovation Campus Boxmeer (HICB), that was precisely the reason to join the project. After eight years as Managing Director of the Automotive Campus in Helmond, he recognised a rare opportunity in Boxmeer: to help shape an ecosystem from the very first outlines.

“Campus development is fundamentally different from traditional real estate,” Lex explains. “You don’t build the structures first and hope an ecosystem follows. It works the other way around: you design space that enables an ecosystem to take shape.”

Why Boxmeer holds promise
What convinced him is the region’s blend of health, agrifood and innovation. The presence of hospitals, medtech companies, foodtech players and organisations in animal health creates a strong foundation. “Not because all these companies will locate on the campus,” he clarifies, “but because they form an ecosystem HICB can build upon.”

This enables HICB to develop with clear focus: proactively in health and medtech, and responsively towards related sectors that require space for production, demonstration or testing.

What truly makes a campus
Research shows that innovation ecosystems thrive on proximity, the ability to create spontaneous encounters, combined with shared facilities and an active community. Lex recognises this from experience. “People want to be close to each other, but they mainly want to know what’s happening around them. On a campus, you naturally gravitate towards peers dealing with similar challenges.”

The biggest misconception, he says, is assuming that collaboration emerges automatically. “You need critical mass. Twenty completely different companies won’t create cross-pollination. And besides that, you need rhythm: programmes, moments to meet, a platform that highlights what’s going on. Once that rhythm exists, you create a sense of ‘fear of missing out; people want to be part of it.”

For HICB, this means community programming is embedded from the start. “People are social by nature. When there’s movement and energy, they lean in.”

When does the ecosystem start to work?
Lex has a clear view of success: “When organisations naturally find each other without our involvement. When existing companies become ambassadors for the campus. That’s when you know the ecosystem is carrying itself.”

He also sees international opportunities, driven by Boxmeer’s strategic location in Northwest Europe and its unique combination of healthcare, medtech and production. “For international companies looking to establish a presence in Europe, this is an attractive region. Boxmeer is, in international terms, close to many major cities. In and around Boxmeer you’ll find companies such as MSD, Marel, Hendrix Genetics, Nutreco and Danone Nutricia. These organisations are not our core target group, but the ecosystems around them include parties that are highly relevant to HICB. The relevance of HICB will ultimately be defined by the companies that choose to be active here.”

Value for companies
For organisations considering Health Innovation Campus Boxmeer, Lex’s message is straightforward: the campus offers the chance to join an environment built for progress. “The combination of an innovative healthcare partner, a campus designed with a future-focused mindset and the ability to showcase technologies in a living-lab setting is very rare. Companies can create real value here.”

That ambition is also what drives him personally. Lex enjoys working on projects with a long horizon that ultimately have visible impact. “The best moment is when the plans become tangible. When the first cranes rise on the site, I’ll be there with my hard hat on, feeling proud. Moments like that give me energy. You see what you’ve set in motion. That’s exactly why I love this work.”