Opus West

The crossroads of growth┬áAs Keith Regan learns, Opus WestÔÇÖs Energy Crossing project will offer top-shelf office space to the space-hungry energy corridor outside of Houston at affordable prices.  Many of the worldÔÇÖs largest oil and gas companies have long maintained headquarters in the Houston area, and the energy services companies that support themÔÇöthose specializing in offshore exploration or deep-water drilling techniques, for instanceÔÇöare eager to set up shop nearby.   ItÔÇÖs on that foundation that Opus West, a division of Minneapolis-based integrated development company Opus Corp., is building Energy Crossing. Energy Crossing will offer Class A office space at what Robert Wheless, director of real estate development for Opus West, calls the epicenter of the energy corridorÔÇöwhere Interstate 10 and Texas State Highway 6 intersect.The 16.9-acre site, which Opus acquired in 2007, was chosen for its location, visibilityÔÇösome 250,000 cars pass the site every day on the two roadsÔÇöand ease of access, with vehicles able to access the site from five different approaches, including one that involves no traffic signals. ÔÇ£We felt there would always be logistical and location reasons for firms in the oil services industry to want to locate here,ÔÇØ Wheless says. With construction scheduled for completion in February 2009, the first phase is already partially leased, with KBC Advanced Technologies, a UK-based energy services firm, taking space in the project. Opus has positioned its Energy Crossing offering as unique in two ways. First, most other Class A space in the area is found in high-rise towers with relatively small floor plates. Energy Crossing offers 240,000 square feet of office space in a low-rise format with much larger floor plates. That layout is appealing to the engineering and design firms that support the energy services industry, Wheless says, and those companies that favor having all employees on a single level to foster collaboration. Opus is also able to offer its space at a lower price than other comparable Class A buildings, due to a vertically integrated development approach to keep costs down and pass those savings on to its tenants. Project manager Monek Smith says that because Opus has all development functionsÔÇöarchitects, engineers, construction and building management professionalsÔÇöunder a single roof, it can move projects forward more quickly, avoiding escalation costs that other developers might encounter. Opus can also make more forward-looking decisions, she states, because it can assemble a meeting that includes the design and construction teams well before the construction phase of a project would begin. Smith, who is employed by OpusÔÇÖs construction subsidiary, began working with the real estate arm of Opus West on the project almost a year before construction began. ÔÇ£We can shorten the time frame on completing a project because of the process we use,ÔÇØ Smith says. Early on, mechanical, electrical and plumbing contractors can be brought to the table during the design process, making for a far more efficient process that avoids surprises and enables a more comprehensive design approach. Opus also uses a design-build approach to keep projects moving, which in turns helps reduce exposure to cost escalation, which can dog projects that run over schedule. Having control of the project from start to finish is also an advantage because tenants sign leases expecting essentially turnkey service, says Wheless. ÔÇ£They want to take the keys on the first day of the lease and focus on their businesses. They want to know that Opus is going to deliver the shell and their space by a certain date and at a certain price. We can provide that certainty, and prospective tenants can be confident weÔÇÖre going to deliver on what we say because weÔÇÖve got the resources of a 55-year-old national real estate company behind all our projects.ÔÇØOpusÔÇÖs nationwide reachÔÇöit has built more than 238 million square feet of buildings since 1953ÔÇömeans buying power to keep costs down on items such as light fixtures, doors and other components of an office project. OpusÔÇÖs experience extends far beyond commercial real estate as well, with the company actively developing industrial, retail, multifamily, government and institutional buildings. Opus is part of a joint venture that recently won a $45.8 million contract to design and build a US Air Force training facility at Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida. ÔÇ£We have a broad range of project types that we have learned from over the years,ÔÇØ Wheless says. ÔÇ£We can leverage that experience on each and every new project we take on.ÔÇØEnergy Crossing will seek LEED Silver certification when construction is completed in early 2009, and Smith says the companyÔÇÖs emphasis on building in long-term efficiency in heating and cooling systems gives it a leg up on the process. ÔÇ£As a company, weÔÇÖve taken the approach that weÔÇÖre going to investigate LEED certification on each one of our projects to see what is feasible,ÔÇØ she says. In fact, OpusÔÇÖs new corporate headquarters building, which the company moved into in late 2008, was recently certified Gold. ÔÇ£No matter what the project, we hold design meetings early on to consider what level of certification we can achieve and what investment makes sense in the long run.ÔÇØEnergy Crossing will feature floor-to-ceiling glass curtain walls in all tenant spaces, which helps maximize natural lighting. Other features include a two-story entrance lobby with natural stone flooring as well as ceiling and cove lighting and extensive onsite parking in garages permitted for the site. The second phase of Energy Crossing is permitted to match whatever is in the market at the time it is being built, and some office projects as large as 350,000 square feet are in the works, says Wheless. ÔÇ£We feel this is a location where there will be demand over the long haul.ÔÇØ┬á