Roche To Spend $3.2 Billion On Basel Site Upgrade
October 22, 2014
By Krystle Vermes, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff
Switzerland-based biopharmaceutical company Roche announced today that it will spend approximately 1.9 billion pounds, or approximately $3 billion, to upgrade its Basel site as it invests in a new research and development center and upgrades existing buildings.
Roche will be spending the money over the course of the next 10 years, and the research and development center will serve 1,900 employees. A new state-of-the-art office building will house up to 1,700 workers.
"Roche is committed long-term to Switzerland and to Basel in its dual role as corporate headquarters and one of our most important sites worldwide", said Roche CEO Severin Schwan. "The entire value chain is represented in Basel. Employees from all parts of the company are making a vital contribution to Roche’s innovative strength, and we want to provide them with an attractive work environment. The new buildings will continue Roche’s tradition of elegant, distinctive and functional architecture.”
Several of the laboratory buildings on the site do not meet present-day requirements for modern, sustainable workplaces. According to the current site development plan, a large portion of the Basel workforce will be brought together to work in up-to-date laboratories on Roche’s main site.
"The planned consolidation of the existing industrial site will eliminate the need to build over green zones", said Jürg Erismann, head of the Basel/Kaiseraugst site. "Instead, Roche will be making more efficient use of those parts of the site that have already been developed but cannot be expanded. Sustainability is a top priority for all our construction projects. For instance, assuming a comparable number of workplaces, the energy used in Building 1 will be only one fifth of the amount consumed in 40-year-old Building 74, which is due to be replaced as part of the site development project."
In addition to taking structure into consideration, the development plans look at nearby neighborhoods and residents’ living conditions. For example, certain buildings will not surpass a specific height to avoid interfering with the view. Roche has also incorporated a modern mobility concept, which will encourage employees to utilize public transportation and bicycles to get to and from work.
Roche, which is one of the world’s largest biotechnology companies, creates products within the realms of oncology, immunology, infectious diseases, ophthalmology and neuroscience. In 2013, the company had more than 85,000 employees around the world.