Industry News

Siemens Inc. has moved its Enterprise Network Division into 325,000 sf at San Jose's Skyport Plaza. The first phase of the 38-acre mixed use Skyport Plaza development consists of three eight-story buildings, two four-level parking garages providing approximately 1,760 parking spaces, a basketball court and pedestrian walkways. The second phase, a mirror of Phase I's commercial office and parking design, will progress as economic conditions improve.

Industrial biotech company Genencor is planning a 22,000-sf manufacturing facility in one of the following cities: Palo Alto, Calif., Belois, Wis., Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Elkhart, Ind., or Rochester, N.Y. Based in Palo Alto, Genencor currently has 1,300 employees. The new facility will manufacture larger quantities of human therapeutics that Genencor is currently researching for healthcare and pharmaceutical applications.

Glendale-based media/entertainment company DreamWorks SKG is planning to lease over 100,000 sf in Redwood City's Pacific Shores for PDI, the company's Palo Alto-based computer animation division. PDI currently occupies 65,000 sf in three buildings in Palo Alto and employs 300 people. The size of the Pacific Shores location would allow PDI to more than double its workforce. The company has been seeking a Bay Area expansion fit for two years.

Ford Motor Co. is considering building a parts distribution center in Mebane, N.C.  Ford's preferred site is the North Carolina Industrial Center, a 550-acre Alamance County business park developed by Samet Corp. Ford plans to lease a minimum of 225,000 sf, which could expand up to 930,000 sf in the next two years. Ford dealerships within a 250-mile radius would be serviced by the distribution center, which could require from 50 to 70 acres of land. Cost of the project, which could include two buildings, is estimated as high as $35 million.

Kinetic Concepts Inc. (KCI) has relocated its national call center, credit, billing, accounts receivable and third-party payer operations to the 58,000-sf KCI Advantage Center at the University Park Tech Center IV in San Antonio. The health care products maker previously housed these operations in 28,000 sf adjacent to the KCI Tower across the street. KCI's 290 employees were relocated in early March to the new facility, which was dedicated on April 5.