The project aims to strengthen knowledge, competence and innovation ability in a small business group that develops magnets and, in the long term, the business community in the Kronoberg region. Uppsala University, Linnaeus University and the Småland business group together have unique skills that can be combined to achieve global competitiveness. The region has many small and medium-sized companies working hard to increase their access to the international market. Increased access to the international market may result in increased growth. The project will help the grouping to strengthen its competence in developing new technologies and aims to develop and manufacture a prototype of an innovative magnet, a so-called “cold” superconducting magnet, requested by large international research facilities. A completed and worked prototype will qualify the participating companies as suppliers to the international research infrastructure CERN in Switzerland. This creates an opening to enter the international market and a broadening of the market that reduces the vulnerability of companies and increases growth. The project’s initiative involving research and innovation collaboration between advanced research and the region’s small-scale industry is an example of challenge-driven innovation and strengthens the link between research and business needs. Collaboration to design and manufacture a magnetic prototype is a co-operation to develop and demonstrate international competitiveness and increase growth. It is the practical work together, with contributions from different competences in manufacturing and innovation that is at the core of the project. It is the co-operation that is the main idea. In order for innovation to continue to develop, investments that enable practical collaboration between manufacturing companies and universities are required.