In the Keystone State, U.K.-based GlaxoSmithKline PLC (GSK) will invest $100 million in a 90-acre (36-hectare) manufacturing site previously owned by Wyeth, where GSK will employ 270 people. This Marietta is in the Lancaster metro area, in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country. Wyeth had discontinued operations as of Dec. 31, 2004.

"We expect to develop new flu vaccine technology at our Marietta facility that we hope will enhance our future ability to rapidly produce flu vaccines for the nation in response to a pandemic," said JP Garnier, CEO of GlaxoSmithKline, on Sept. 1, before media coverage of bird flu in Asia further took pandemic concern to new heights. "This new technology will complement our current egg-based flu vaccine manufacturing. We are working hand-in-hand with government officials to help meet public health needs by expanding our capabilities as a reliable supplier of vaccines for the U.S."

GSK in Marietta

GSK on August 31 received FDA approval to make its current flu vaccine, Fluarix, available in the U.S. in time for the 2005-2006 flu season. That supply is being manufactured at the company's Dresden, Germany, complex, which is now seeing the doubling of capacity to meet worldwide demand. In July, the company finalized its acquisition of Seattle-based Corixa Corp., whose products, included in vaccines, can act as boosters to immune-system responses to the vaccines. GSK is planning to launch five major new vaccines over the next five years: Cervarix, an HPV vaccine targeting cervical cancer; Rotarix, a vaccine against rotavirus already approved in 13 countries including Mexico; a vaccine to prevent pneumococcal disease; an improved flu vaccine for the elderly; and a meningitis combination vaccine for infants in the US.

Pennsylvania is by no means a stranger to vaccine development. As documented in the September 2005 issue of Site Selection , Sanofi Pasteur is investing $150 million of its own in a flu vaccine plant in Swiftwater — a follow-up investment to the $127 million that predecessor Aventis Pasteur invested in Pennsylvania in 2004 in facilities in Swiftwater and Scranton. The company's chairman and CEO, David J. Williams, hails from northeast Pennsylvania, and the firm in 2004 established its headquarters in Bridgewater, N.J.. In August, according to Financial Times, the company's Swiftwater complex received one of the largest orders of eggs ever placed by the U.S. government.

GSK is not stopping in Marietta with its vaccine and facility growth. On Sept. 8 it announced the purchase of Vancouver, B.C.-based vaccine maker ID Biomedical for $1.4 billion. And in August it announced a $92-million, 200-job expansion of its 22-year-old manufacturing complex in Zebulon, N.C., which will see incentive help via a $1.9-million Job Development Investment Grant and $500,000 from the One North Carolina Fund.

Meanwhile, back in Marietta, at least one resident is happy to see something happening relatively quickly at the former Wyeth facility.

"In March of 2004, I joined with Senator David Brightbill in requesting that the Governor assemble the Governor's Action Team to do whatever necessary to find a suitable buyer for the Wyeth Plant," said Pennsylvania State Rep. Dave Hickernell. "Since that time, I have closely monitored the status of this facility including the participation in meetings and discussions with representatives of GlaxoSmithKline and members of the Governor's Action Team. The purchase of the East Donegal Township plant by GlaxoSmithKline is the result of a great deal of hard work by many individuals. Local, county, state and federal officials, including Congressman Joe Pitts, Senator David Brightbill, the Lancaster County Commissioners, the East Donegal Township Supervisors, and the Donegal School Board all worked together successfully to make this a reality. This is a perfect example of various levels of government coming together to work with private industry in fostering economic development and job creation."

Jack Smith, manager, real estate, Americas and Asia for GSK, is an IAMC member, as is Charles Manula, vice president, global R&D facilities, for Wyeth.

In separate but related news, IAMC member company Novartis is paying $5.1 billion to buy the rest of Emeryville, Calif.-based Chiron Corp., which had experienced production quality problems in the past year at plants in the U.K. and Germany. Novartis Chairman and CEO Daniel Vasella said Chiron's biopharmaceuticals business would be integrated into Novartis' existing business, while its vaccine division would become a new Novartis business unit. And he has pledged to invest in vaccine R&D and manufacturing capacity. Ron Grossmann, senior real estate specialist for Novartis, is an IAMC member.

On the occasion of paying out its 200th consecutive quarterly cash dividend on August 1, filtration manufacturer Donaldson Co. announced that its board had approved the repatriation of $80 million of foreign earnings in fiscal 2006, with plans to reinvest those earnings in the United States, pursuant to the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004. That makes it one of nearly 100 large companies to do so, according to an October report in The Wall Street Journal.

The total repatriated through September came to $206 billion, said the newspaper, but direct ties to job creation are scant. That said, the likes of Intel, Dell, PepsiCo and Bausch & Lomb are repatriating large sums at the same time that they're pursuing major U.S. projects.

In connection with this repatriation plan, Donaldson expects to record a tax charge of $5.6 million ($.06 per share) in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2005. "It is possible the company may repatriate additional foreign earnings in fiscal 2006, depending on cash availability and alternative uses," said a release. James A. Martin, director of real estate, construction and asset management for Donaldson, is an IAMC member.

Dr. John Lombard

In the August 2005 edition of Economic Development Quarterly, IAMC academic member and Site Selection Editorial Advisory Board member John R. Lombard, director of the Center for Real Estate and Economic Development at Old Dominion University, co-authored "Impact of Headquarters Relocation on the Operating Performance of the Firm." Using 167 examples of corporate relocations during the 1990s, and studying over a six-year period select non-stock-market performance indicators such as return on assets and ratio of debt to assets, the authors concluded that operating performance did not appreciably improve after relocation, and that distance moved had no significant impact. "If there are expectations for improvement in performance, they must be extremely long-range expectations," the authors state. "It may be the case that relocating firms are achieving some reduction in their overhead costs, but this is not translating into bottom-line increases in profitability."

Masco Corp. company KraftMaid Cabinetry broke ground last week on a new 840,000-sq.-ft., $106-million manufacturing facility in West Jordan, Utah, just outside of Salt Lake City. After supervisory hiring begins next July, followed by other hiring in October 2006, cabinet production at the plant is expected to begin in January of 2007. At full capacity, 1,300 workers at this facility will eventually produce about 6,000 cabinets a day. KraftMaid also recently completed a $25-million expansion of production space in Northeast Ohio, increasing the size of each of its three manufacturing facilities there and expanding its work force. "The western growth corridor is a high demand area," said KraftMaid President Tom Chieffe. "With a state-of-the-art facility in the Salt Lake Valley, coupled with its strong labor base and excellent access to major transportation corridors, KraftMaid will be well-positioned to provide faster and better service to customers in the western and central parts of the country." Taylor, Mich.-based Masco is represented at IAMC by Mark Perry, director, property; and founding IAMC board member David Hirsch, director, real estate, construction and property management.

In late October, IAMC member company Schneider Electric announced it would invest $7.2 million (6 million euros) in a 129,171-sq.-ft. (12,000-sq.-m.) plant for the manufacture of electrical breakers in Bulgaria. Karen McClellan, Ohio-based corporate real estate manager for Square D/Schneider Electric, is an IAMC member.

Julian Pinner

Grubb & Ellis Co. has named Julian Pinner, 38, former head of Knight Frank's European corporate real estate services, as managing director of its corporate services group. Pinner's past experience includes European real estate advising to Westinghouse Electric and Siebel Systems, as well as public sector and investor clients. "Julian's extensive background serving the global needs of multinational companies make him an extremely valuable addition to our corporate services team," said IAMC member Steve Stoner, president of Grubb & Ellis Corporate Services. Former Jones Lang Lasalle senior vice president Dylan Taylor also has joined Grubb & Ellis Corporate Services as executive vice president and regional managing director. Taylor, 35, will oversee the group's Rocky Mountain, Southeast and Mid Atlantic regions from Denver. Former CB Richard Ellis Vice President Theodore S. Prillaman also has recently joined Grubb & Ellis as a vice president of its office group, with a concentration on Chicago's central business district.

Ed McLaughlin, founder of IAMC member organization USI Companies Inc., has been named president of the Integrated Real Estate and Facilities Management at Johnson Controls, Inc. Johnson Controls acquired corporate real estate services firm USI in May 2005. In McLaughlin's new role, he will manage Integrated Real Estate and Facilities Management business in the Americas, which combines the Johnson Controls facilities management capabilities with USI's real estate capabilities. Andrew Goldstrom, managing director, Southeast region, for USI, is an IAMC member.

Atlanta-based industrial real estate developer and management firm IDI has made a slew of new appointments, including the elevation of Tim Gunter to president, David Birdwell to COO and Linda Booker to vice president and CFO. The moves, effective on Jan. 1, 2006, come as IDI founder Henry D. "Greg" Gregory prepares the way for his retirement by stepping down from the president's spot, though he remains CEO. S. Michael Parks, vice president of national business development for IDI, is an IAMC member.

Tim Gunter	David Birdwell	Henry D. Gregory

In its largest single acquisition in eight years, Chicago-based IAMC member organization First Industrial Realty Trust on Sept. 6 purchased a 2.4-million-sq.-ft. (222,960-sq.-m.), 18-building industrial portfolio from Principal Real Estate Investors. The group includes nine buildings in Dallas, four in Chicago, three in Minneapolis and one each in Kansas City and San Antonio. Gary Weiss, senior vice president of First Industrial, is an IAMC member.