On Sept. 1, CBRE Group, Inc. announced that it had closed the acquisition of Johnson Controls, Inc.’s Global Workplace Solutions business. Global Workplace Solutions provides enterprise facilities management solutions for global corporations and other large firms with commercial real estate. In 2014, the acquired business had a revenue of more than US$3 billion.
“This is a very exciting step for CBRE,” said Bob Sulentic, president and CEO of the company, in a press release. “It advances our strategy of delivering the highest quality, globally integrated services to major occupiers and builds our relationships with many of the world’s most prominent corporations. We are helping our clients to enhance their competitive position by aligning every aspect of how they lease, own, use and operate real estate.”
CBRE has experienced long-term, double-digit revenue growth in its occupier outsourcing business line. The skills of Global Workplace Solutions in technical engineering, supply chain management, critical facilities and other capabilities are being added to CBRE’s service offerings.
Global Workplace Solutions is the largest provider of facilities management services outside the United States, while CBRE’s services cater to the Americas. Together, they will be able to provide clients with their services anywhere. Global Workplace Solutions has been merged with CBRE’s outsourcing building line under the name Global Workplace Solutions.
CBRE’s Global Workplace Solutions is run by CEO Bill Concannon (CEO of CBRE’s occupier outsourcing business line before the merger) and COO John Murphy (formerly president of Global Workplace Solutions when it was part of JCI).
“We are thrilled that our new colleagues have joined CBRE. They are an enormously talented group and our combined capabilities create a value proposition that is truly unique in the marketplace,” said Concannon in a press release.
In addition to the acquisition, CBRE Group and Johnson Controls have entered into a 10-year strategic partnership, as previously announced. CBRE will provide Johnson Controls with a full suite of integrated corporate real estate services, such as facilities management, project management and transaction services, on more than 50 million square feet of real estate. In return, Johnson Controls will offer its lowest-available commercial pricing on HVAC, building automation, security, fire and related services to CBRE clients and properties around the world. The companies will also together fund a building innovation lab.
After the merger, CBRE now manages a total of approximately five billion square feet of commercial real estate and corporate facilities around the world, including 2.3 billion square feet in the Americas, 1.3 billion square feet in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and 1.4 billion square feet in the Asia Pacific region.
