Brand strategy for a cleantech hub
How can you leap into a league of renowned science and tech parks while building on an industrial heritage? Commissioned by Schipper Bosch, Silo developed a clear and strategic positioning, a new name, and a spatial brand approach for Cleantech Park Arnhem. Our brand strategy places the park firmly among the Netherlands’ leading innovation hubs, sharpening its identity and providing a solid foundation for future growth.
Client
SchipperBosch
Partners
Visual identity design: Simons en Boom
Video: Pieter van den Berg
From industry park to innovation park
Cleantech Park Arnhem – the former Akzo Nobel site, Industriepark Kleefse Waard – is undergoing a fundamental transformation. For more than two decades, Schipper Bosch has been redeveloping the 80-year-old site into a dynamic cleantech campus.
The 90-hectare site houses, facilitates, and connects some 80 sustainable and energy-related startups, established companies, and knowledge institutions. Empty lots are temporarily used, for example, as solar fields or test sites, creating an atmosphere brimming with innovation and potential. However, the park’s branding lacks focus and visibility, resulting in a diluted identity that at times competes for attention with the individual tenants.
Keeping it clean: a clear direction for development
To firmly reposition the park, we conducted workshops and interviews with the client team, tenants, visitors, and other stakeholders to uncover strengths and weaknesses. Rather than starting from scratch, the process clarified, structured, and amplified what was already working within the park’s core identity.
The outcome is a strategically defined positioning that articulates a clear direction for the park’s development and perception. It unites the brand story and core values into a framework that informs decision-making across communication, design, and experience. As the park is home to many other branded entities, we also established a coherent brand architecture that enables individual expression while reinforcing a strong, shared context.
The new name is clear and future-focused, with international appeal.
Renamed with purpose
Through an iterative and well-argued process with the client, we developed a new name: Cleantech Park Arnhem. As the most crucial expression of the refreshed positioning, the name boldly reflects the park’s strategic focus on energy transition and circular economy innovation. Cleantech Park Arnhem now sits confidently within the (inter)national landscape of innovation campuses. With its clarity, the name will attract like-minded tenants and provide a strong foundation for all future branding, communications, and design decisions.
Communication all across the park
With clear positioning and a strong name, we defined a new approach to location-based communication. What is the park’s purpose, who are its residents, and which innovative technologies are developed on-site? As people move through the environment, strategic messaging delivers answers while encouraging connection, collaboration, and community pride.
The communication layer is integrated with wayfinding, which was previously designed for vehicles and doesn’t reflect the increased foot traffic. Its layout created visual clutter, limiting clarity and legibility. By redefining wayfinding logic and calibrating scale, hierarchy, and messaging, we ensure the physical experience aligns seamlessly with the park’s mission and strategic identity.
