Industry News

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.

The Guadalupe Valley Electric Cooperative Inc. (GVEC) is building a Lineman's Training Facility on 11 acres of company-owned land in Gonzales. The Texas Electric Cooperatives, an Austin trade association, has partnered with GVEC to share building costs. The facility, slated for completion in August, is GVEC's third Texas site where journeyman linemen can benefit from educational programs and safety training. The first training facility opened in Levelland in 2001; GVEC is now building a Northeast Texas training facility in Henderson.

The $503,000-million contract for FedEx's Greensboro hub was recently approved by the Piedmont Triad Airport Authority. Included on the project team is engineering firm Baker & Associates, based in Pittsburgh, Pa. with an office in Greensboro; ECS, a geo-technical company; and Regional Land Surveyors.