International company JTI plan for new headquarters in Geneva
Japan Tobacco International (JTI) has unveiled its plan for further investment in Geneva with a new building for its international headquarters. The aim is to build offices totalling approximately 25 000 sq m in the Sécheron area of the city by the end of 2013. JTI has instructed UK-based architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), Geneva-based architects group8, global property consultancy Knight Frank as project managers and global construction consultants Davis Langdon as cost managers.
Frits Vranken, senior vice president business development & corporate strategy at JTI commented: “Geneva is key to JTI’s long-term growth. Our company has been located in this city for more than four decades. We felt it was time for the company to invest in its own building. It offers us more flexibility as we grow and plan for the future. Currently, 700 employees work for our international headquarters in three separate buildings, and we expect there will be about 1,000 in the next four years. Our long-term objective is to have everyone under one roof.”
JTI moved in 2007 to Carouge, Geneva. However, the acquisition of UK-based Gallaher Group Plc the same year, and JTI’s growth projections, compelled the Company to reconsider its needs.
Kent Jackson, Design Director at SOM said: “The location itself was inspiring. It has a unique combination of international organisations close by, gardens, the lake and the mountain backdrop. Few city sites allow you the opportunity to create such harmony with their surroundings. The design is based on an elemental form, which we raise from the ground to enhance the open space. We want the building both to be distinctly recognisable by pedestrians at ground level, and to have an articulated roofscape that will be identifiable to Geneva.”
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