Karla Tower
Tallest Building in Scandinavia
The Karla Tower is currently being built in Gothenburg, Sweden. It is going to be the tallest skyscraper in Scandinavia and the high-rise building is to be finished in two years. The 245 m high building offers space for 594 apartments and hotels. The construction is based on 58 piles with 2m diameter, anchored about 60 meters down through mud and rocks. The tallest building in Scandinavia is definitely a challenge in itself.
CHALLENGES
The concrete structure is planned to top out at the beginning of 2022 – good time management and thought-through processes are needed to succeed in the project and meet the deadline in this strict schedule.
Time is a valuable source, especially on extensive projects where several companies, contractors collaborate together to build the 73-floor high skyscraper in Sweden’s second largest city, optimal adjustments and continuous coordination are key.
Obviously, the most used material in the whole skyscraper is going to be concrete, the concrete structure consists of bored piles, raft slab, core (incl. elevators, stairs), columns, two outrigger levels, and slabs. However, estimating the current concrete curing is a challenge as the process is highly influenced by external influences such as weather, wind, and humidity. But knowing the exact current strength of the floor is essential to work efficiently without losing valuable redundant waiting time.
Thus, every opportunity to save time is valuable and smart solutions to optimize the workflow are embraced.
- Tough deadlines: Heading for weekly floor cycles
- Lack of insights into the curing process
- Break tests with test specimen do not 100% reflect the actual curing
in the structure and are a time-consuming task
Everywhere we push the boundaries!”


SOLUTION
The Maturix In-situ solution provides Serneke with an end-to-end tool for concrete strength monitoring.
By using thermocouples that are cast directly in the structure and connected to a transmitter, the temperature inside the concrete is measured continuously. The data is sent wirelessly to the cloud platform. The software automatically calculates maturity and strength based on the history data and the concrete mix and the strength development process can be followed. The data is accessible from any device via the web portal or app and provides Serneke with real-time insights into the actual curing status inside the structure in several positions for each cast.
Thus, Magnus Eckert, project manager of Serneke, always knows exactly how the concrete is curing and if he has to adjust his project management on-site according to data. With the smart solution, he has access to the data from anywhere using Maturix.
REMAIN ON SCHEDULE
ENSURE SAFETY
GET AUTOMATIC DOCUMENTATION
RESULTS
By using Maturix Serneke, on the one hand, ensured that the required strength has been reached while on the other hand, the tough time management for the tallest building in Scandinavia is eased. Getting insights into the curing status turns into the basis for decisions and proactive attitude while keeping the overview and having an automatically digitalized solution for temperature monitoring at hand.
- Keeping the tight timing with finishing one floor each week
- Improving product quality and ensuring safety
- Automatic documentation




USE CASE SUMMARY
Karla Tower is going to be the tallest building in Scandinavia and the concrete monitoring solution Maturix is used throughout the whole construction periode. The solution has been chosen for its flexibility, the real-time insight to ensure safe and efficient curing as well as for its automatic documentation.
PROJECT: KARLA TOWER
Location Gothenburg, Sweden
Type High-rise building
Size 245 m high
MATURIX IN-SITU
Maturix devices 12 transmitters
Usage 70+ monitorings (ongoing!)
CLIENT: SERNEKE
Employees 1200
Headquarter Gothenburg, Sweden


About Karla Tower
Gothenburg will have its first real skyscraper which also will become the tallest building in Scandinavia. The building will be 245 meters tall and its location at Lindholmen means that its profile will be visible both from the river and the city center. Ola Serneke, CEO and founder of the Serneke Group, has himself initiated the project.
About Serneke
Serneke is the next generation construction company operating in construction, civil engineering and project development.
The company was founded in 2002 and is already one of Sweden’s largest construction companies. Serneke offers the same assurance and knowledge as market leaders, but with more energy, dedication and a more modern approach.