Technoparc Villes d’avenir Montreal Economic edition 2016

COLLECTION

VOLUME 7 | ISSUE 1

MONTREAL

E c o n o m i c MONTRÉAL LOOKS FORWARD TO A MAJOR MILESTONE THE UNIVERSITY CITY A REAL-ESTATE ECOSYSTEM

UNITED IN DIVERSITY POMERLEAU

BUILDING ON HALF A CENTURY OF

SUCCESSFUL CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS

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INTERVIEW

TECHNOPARC MONTRÉAL

A MAGNET FOR INVESTORS

BY NATHALIE SAVARIA, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

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TECHNOPARC MONTRÉAL

In 2015, Technoparc Montréal (especially the Saint-Laurent Campus) enjoyed a remarkable year in terms of attracting Canadian and international companies and investors. President and CEO Mario Monette sums up a banner year, pointing to a long list of stellar statistics and achievements.

FUTURE CANADIAN HEADQUARTERS OF GREEN CROSS BIOTHERAPEUTICS

TWO HEAD OFFICES Monette says that the arrival of Green Cross Biotherapeutics definitely tops the list of major achievements for Technoparc Montréal, which mainly includes companies associated with the life sciences, telecommunications and aerospace. Affordable operating costs compared to Toronto and the availability of highly qualified workers were the key factors that convinced management of the South Korean multinational to choose Montréal, he says. Green Cross’ $275-million Canadian head office is now being built on the Saint-Laurent Campus.

In October 2015, ABB, a Swiss-Swedish multinational that specializes in energy and automation technologies, announced that its Canadian HQ, already located in Montréal but spread over six buildings, would be transferred to the Technoparc. The ABB Campus will feature streamlined design and meet standards for LEED Silver certification.

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MONTRÉAL ECONOMIC MAGAZINE : : 2016 EDITION

TECHNOPARC MONTRÉAL

“We saw $420 million worth of direct investments in 2015 – and counting indirect investments takes us over the billiondollar mark! About 1,200 jobs were created or preserved.

It’s the Technoparc’s best year ever for economic spinoffs from construction projects,” says Monette enthusiastically.

MARIO MONETTE President and CEO Technoparc Montréal

Built by Québec-based Broccolini, it will cover 300,000 square feet, with work slated to wind up in the summer of 2017.

Although ABB has not released the total cost, Monette says this major project would be in the same ballpark as Green Cross.

NEW STRATEGIC ORIENTATION With an eye to future growth, Technoparc Montréal plans to attract not only multinationals and their subsidiaries, but also local and regional SMEs, including start-ups. “The departure of major pharmaceutical labs and research centres brought about this change in our business model,” notes Monette.

Two business centres are specifically targeting that clientele: 7140 rue Albert-Einstein, another LEED Silver-certified building, and 2300 boulevard Alfred-Nobel, where Technoparc Montréal moved its own administrative offices in December 2015. The two centres offer a broad range of services, along with various types of rentals – open and closed offices, collaborative spaces, meeting and conference rooms – at affordable rates. For example, the monthly fee for a mobile office is just $150, says Monette.

But that’s not all. Technoparc Montréal is working with Développement économique Saint-Laurent to develop a support, networking and partnership plan for companies in the start-up phase.

With the arrival of a new property manager, Nancy De Blois, Technoparc Montréal will continue to work on its diversified real estate project portfolio.

LOWEST VACANCY RATE EVER All this good news has of course had an impact on available office space. In December 2014, the vacancy rate for the Saint-Laurent Campus stood at 6.9%, a historic low for Technoparc Montréal, Monette points out with pride.

He expects the rate to rise slightly in 2015, notably due to major job losses at Bombardier.

BROCCOLINI

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TECHNOPARC MONTRÉAL

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LEED SILVER-CERTIFIED BUSINESS CENTRE Broccolini opened its new Saint-Laurent 2 business centre in 2015. The 130,000 square foot commercial building, which is LEED Silver certified, already has a major tenant, Hospira, recently acquired by Pfizer, that occupies 50,000 square feet. Hospira, which originally planned to set up its Canadian head office here, has opted to keep its administrative offices on the premises. “If Hospira hadn’t been bought by Pfizer, we would have had a record three new head offices at the Technoparc,” says Monette.

All the same, with such a sterling track record, Technoparc Montréal is definitely attracting a lot of attention from companies and investors at home and abroad. Stay tuned for more good news in 2016!

1. THE FUTURE HEADQUARTERS OF ABB CANADA 2. 7140 ALBERT-EINSTEIN 3. 2300 ALFRED-NOBEL

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DATA CENTRE In September 2015, Vidéotron, a division of Québecor Média and Canada’s leading telecommunications company, announced that its new $40-million data centre would be set up on the Saint-Laurent Campus. Construction is now underway, with the building slated to open in June 2016. “This project, which is attached to the 4Degrees Data Centre in Québec City, will provide perfect redundancy over a 250-km network,” says the president and CEO of the Technoparc.

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TECHNOPARC MONTRÉAL

THE SAINT-LAURENT CAMPUS IN A NUTSHELL

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More than 90 technology companies, from start-ups to multinationals More than 6,256 highly specialized employees Nearly 4,000 active researchers Vacancy rates over time 2007 : 23.3% 2013 : 12.7% 2014 : 6.9% 25 to 40% green space on every lot Five times more green space than the average for industrial parks in Québec Located just 10 minutes from Montréal’s Pierre-ElliottTrudeau International Airport, surrounded by aerospace, life sciences and ICT companies, the Technoparc is easily accessible via autoroutes 13 and 40

MONTRÉAL ECONOMIC MAGAZINE : : 2016 EDITION

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