Telecommunications

Nokia unveiled a state-of-the-art campus for R&D and manufacturing in September of 2025 in Oulu, Finland. Spanning 592,015 sf, this dynamic innovation hub will design, test, and deliver 5G and 6G radio networks built for artificial intelligence. The bipartite project comprises eight floors of flexible office space and a two-story factory for industrial production. Laboratories equipped with advanced technologies provide both simulated and real-world field verification environments to accelerate network evolution.

Huawei Technologies is planning to construct a $1.3 billion R&D center in Cambridge in the United Kingdom. Acting as the international headquarters for the company's optoelectronics business, the 538,000-sf complex will provide research, development, and manufacturing facilities for the creation of optical devices and modules. Catalyzing the growing innovation cluster in the region, the project will be built on a 500-acre brownfield site that Huawei acquired in 2018.

NASA will begin construction in March of 2020 on the 54,000-sf Aerospace Communications Facility in Cleveland. Located at the Glenn Research Center, the structure will provide approximately 25 R&D labs, a shielded high-bay space, and areas for rooftop and ground-based antennae fields. The project has a maximum construction contract value of $33.8 million and will be built by The Austin Company. A minimum of LEED Silver sustainable design certification will be sought for the facility, which will include a geothermal system to enhance energy performance.

Apple broke ground in November of 2019 on a $1 billion campus in Austin, Texas. The 133-acre development will provide three million square feet of integrated research, office, and production facilities nestled in abundant green space, which will occupy 60 percent of the site. Powered entirely by renewable energy, the complex will initially house 5,000 employees with full occupancy estimated at 15,000. Occupancy is expected in 2022. The project will include a 50-acre nature and wildlife preserve that will be open to the public. 

Foxconn Industrial Internet will begin construction in fall of 2019 on the 261,600-sf Smart Manufacturing Center in Mount Pleasant, Mich. Accommodating up to 500 employees at full capacity, the facility will support the production of components for computer server racks with integrated manufacturing space, warehouse areas, and a 40,000-sf office mezzanine. The Smart Manufacturing Center was designed by Eppstein Uhen Architects and will be built by Mortenson Construction. Completion is expected by summer of 2020.

Boeing will lease approximately 100,000 sf of research space to house the Aerospace and Autonomy Center in Cambridge, Mass. Part of MIT's Kendall Square Initiative project, the facility will be located on four floors of a 17-story, 400,000-sf building currently under construction at 314 Main Street. Occupancy is expected in late 2020. The $2 billion Kendall Square Initiative includes the development of six sites to provide research space, offices, housing, retail, and academic facilities.

Lockheed Martin broke ground in August of 2017 on a $350 satellite production facility in Littleton, Colo. Located on Lockheed’s Waterton Canyon campus, the 266,000-sf Gateway Center will feature a high bay cleanroom, an anechoic chamber, and a thermal vacuum chamber to simulate space conditions. The secure facility will utilize digitally enabled production technologies and is slated for completion in 2020.

Ericsson is planning to build a $1.3 billion R&D center in Montreal. Located in the suburb of Vaudreuil-Dorion, the 430,560-sf engineering facility will support product development and testing as well as housing Ericsson’s internal IT infrastructure. Occupancy is expected in 2015. Ericsson is a global manufacturer of telecommunications equipment and networks based in Sweden.

Johnson Controls has won a new contract to provide facilities management services to the BBC's property portfolio in London and Scotland. The five-year contract will cover 129 premises and 700,000 square meters (7,532,000 sf) of workspace. Johnson Controls will also provide specialist services across the BBC's wider UK property portfolio. Johnson Controls created a custom-made technological solution for the BBC which addresses its critical broadcast continuity and customer service requirements.

Motorola has opened a new research and development center in the Binjiang district of the Hi-tech Industry Development Zone in Hangzhou, China. The facility will develop, test, and launch software and hardware for integration in consumer products.

Verizon Communications has awarded Skanska USA Building the construction management services assignment to renovate seven four-story buildings on a 135-acre campus in Basking Ridge, New Jersey. The 1.3 million-sf complex, formerly occupied by AT&T, will house the leadership teams for Verizon's Domestic Telecom and International units. Construction on the $98-million project has begun. The project involves interior and exterior renovations, as well as numerous mechanical plant upgrades.

Nielsen Media Research (NMR), a provider of television audience measurement and monitoring services, has completed its new $71.5 million, 39-acre corporate campus in Oldsmar, Fla. The 475,000-sf Phase I campus consists of five interconnected buildings which include training rooms, conference facilities, and a 4,000-sf employee cafeteria that can accommodate over 330 people. The project features a four-story, 100,000-sf data center and central plant with a 25,000-sf computer room.

Williams Communications (WilTel) has completed its 750,000-sf technology center in Tulsa , Okla. The 15-story vertical campus features 52,000-sf floor plates, allowing office floors to function as self-contained mini-campuses. Designed by HOK, the energy-efficient facility uses natural light, 16-foot-high ceilings, and a vertical “solar well” circulation core that acts as a return air plenum, natural ventilation shaft, and thermal buffer. At the center of the building is a secure three-story, 47,000-sf Network Operations Center and the Executive Center .

Discovery Communications will locate its new programming distribution center in a 50,000-sf facility in Sterling, Va. Featuring automated systems that store programming without the use of video tapes, the center will accommodate the transmission of programming for Discovery’s 14 cable networks. Slated for occupancy in late 2005, the center will house 100 employees.

Comcast Corp. opened its 86,000-sf call center in Irving, Texas in early June 2004. The facility will accommodate 450 employees, including local technical operations teams, managers, and customer service workers.