Ford begins 10-year plan to centralize Dearborn, Mich., campus

This week, the Ford Motor Company announced that it has teamed up with SmithGroupJJR to centralize its 60-year-old Dearborn, Mich., plant. The company said that it will rebuild 7.5 million sf of work space over a 10-year period, which will shift 30,000 employees from 70 buildings now into two primary locations.

The company will integrate green features and technology into the design. The layout will be walkable, with paths, trails, and covered walkways. Meanwhile, the campus will be able to handle autonomous vehicles, on-demand shuttles, and eBikes. The wireless speeds will be up to 10 times faster than they are now. A new 700,000-sf Design Center will be the highlight of the campus.

Ford said the renovated plant will better serve it during its transition into becoming both an auto and a mobility company. While designing, producing, and marketing automobiles like cars, trucks, and SUVs will be the primary business driver, Ford will also push Ford Smart Mobility, which will focus on connectivity, mobility, and autonomous vehicles.

“As we transition to an auto and a mobility company, we’re investing in our people and the tools they use to deliver our vision,” Ford President and CEO Mark Fields said in a statement. “Bringing our teams together in an open, collaborative environment will make our employees’ lives better, speed decision-making and deliver results for both our core and emerging businesses.”

While green data centers will continue to be a trend within the industry, technology is also driving infrastructure upgrades that have never been seen before, according to the 2011 Data Center Technical Market Report from Environmental Systems Design. The report also includes an overview of the national data center market, construction costs, blackouts and disaster prevention, and site selection.

| Jan 4, 2011

Grubb & Ellis predicts commercial real estate recovery

Grubb & Ellis Company, a leading real estate services and investment firm, released its 2011 Real Estate Forecast, which foresees the start of a slow recovery in the leasing market for all property types in the coming year.

| Nov 29, 2010

Data Centers: Keeping Energy, Security in Check

Power consumption for data centers doubled from 2000 and 2006, and it is anticipated to double again by 2011, making these mission-critical facilities the nation’s largest commercial user of electric power. Major technology companies, notably Hewlett-Packard, Cisco Systems, and International Business Machines, are investing heavily in new data centers. HP, which acquired technology services provider EDS in 2008, announced in June that it would be closing many of its older data centers and would be building new, more highly optimized centers around the world.

| Nov 3, 2010

Public works complex gets eco-friendly addition

The renovation and expansion of the public works operations facility in Wilmette, Ill., including a 5,000-sf addition that houses administrative and engineering offices, locker rooms, and a lunch room/meeting room, is seeking LEED Gold certification.

| Oct 12, 2010

The Watch Factory, Waltham, Mass.

27th Annual Reconstruction Awards — Gold Award. When the Boston Watch Company opened its factory in 1854 on the banks of the Charles River in Waltham, Mass., the area was far enough away from the dust, dirt, and grime of Boston to safely assemble delicate watch parts.

| Oct 12, 2010

Building 13 Naval Station, Great Lakes, Ill.

27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Gold Award. Designed by Chicago architect Jarvis Hunt and constructed in 1903, Building 13 is one of 39 structures within the Great Lakes Historic District at Naval Station Great Lakes, Ill.