Industry News

LG Chem Industrial Materials, a unit of the LG Group of Korea , will build a 150,000-sf manufacturing plant in Georgia ’s Gordon county. Representing a $40 million investment, the facility will create up to 70 new jobs initially with a significant potential for growth within five years. LG Chem is a chemical company that manufactures products ranging from petrochemical goods to high performance polymers and plastics.

Lear Corp ., a Southfield, Mich.-based manufacturer of auto parts, is opening a $4-million, 53,760-sf facility at the Ford Motor Co.’s manufacturing campus in Chicago . The plant will produce headliners and package trays for several Ford models. Lear is one of twelve auto suppliers located in Ford’s 155-acre supplier manufacturing campus.

The University of California Riverside has selected Shepley Bulfinch Richardson and Abbott (SBRA) of Riverside to design its new Genomics building. The 110,000-sf building will provide the University’s Genomics Institute with state-of-the-art research laboratories for its faculty, researchers, and support staff. SBRA is designing the $34.4-million project in association with RBB Architects of Los Angeles .

Law firm Preston Gates & Ellis has completed its 220,000-sf headquarters in Seattle , Wash. Designed by STUDIOS Architecture, the facility features specific design elements to increase productivity:

Fairfield, Conn.-based General Electric Co. is planning a 75,000-sf expansion of its research center in Niskayuna , N.Y. The $25 million project will create new offices and labs at the chemical engineering building at the site. Construction will begin in late 2004 and reach completion in 2005. Plans describe the construction of an additional 10,000-sf facility for manufacturing and research. GE is engaged in the $100 million renovation of its 1.4 million-sf GE Global Research Center at the site.