Bio-Pharm Executives Get Invitation With $75 Million Price Tag

HILLSBORO, Ore., Jan. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 1,000 bio- pharmaceutical decision makers got special invitations this week to tour a unique piece of real estate with a $75 million asking price.

The Colliers International Advanced Technology Real Estate Group (ATREG) invitation touts the former Komatsu clean manufacturing plant as the next great site for manufacturing biotechnology and pharmaceutical products.

"Because these facilities already contain required infrastructure, including cleanrooms and power, a bio-pharmaceutical operation can get huge cost savings and cut six to 12 months in start-up time," explained Stephen Rothrock, senior vice president of Collier's advanced technology group. "The semiconductor industry's current consolidation is positive for other industries. Conversion of facilities from one use to another is part of a counter-offshoring trend that keeps good paying jobs in local communities."

A prime example of this trend, Rothrock noted, is PeaceHealth's purchase of Sony's former optical disk manufacturing facility in Springfield, Oregon last year. PeaceHealth is converting the 327,000 square feet into laboratory and support area for hospitals and clinics in Oregon, Washington and southeastern Alaska.

Says PeaceHealth's Real Estate V.P. Jim Werfelman, "We paid $16 million and our industry consultants who recently visited say we couldn't have a better space if we had built it from the ground up. The second alternative for us would have cost $15 million more than we paid so this was a huge savings."

The Hillsboro Komatsu site, located in the Sunset Corridor near Intel and TriQuint, covers 94 acres and 185,000 SF of manufacturing space, including 127,000 SF of cleanrooms. The building is easily divisible into at least three separate sections and already has support areas and an office building in place.

CONTACT: Bruce Lewis of Lewis & Summers Public Relations,+1-707-964-3844, for Bio-Pharm