UTC Opens Center for Intelligent Buildings HQ in Palm Beach Gardens

PALM BEACH GARDENS, FL—A host of business and political dignitaries were on hand on Tuesday to official open the new UTC Center for Intelligent Buildings complex here.

The facility will serve as the global headquarters for UTC Climate, Controls & Security, a unit of Connecticut-based United Technologies Corp. The company, which is a provider of heating, ventilating, air conditioning and refrigeration systems, as well as building controls, automation, fire and security systems, states the 224,000 square-foot building will eventually house approximately 500 employees. Published reports put the cost of the project between $115 million and $150 million.

In addition to providing state-of-the art workspace, the UTC Center for Intelligent Buildings features innovative United Technologies products, integrated systems and interactive displays from company brands such as Carrier, Otis, Automated Logic, Chubb, Edwards, Kidde and Lenel. The building is designed to meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Platinum standards.

The building is projected to reduce energy costs by 60%, water consumption by 36% and reduce CO2 at the property by 60%. The center is designed to indoor air quality conditions found by Harvard University researchers to double occupants’ cognitive function test scores compared to a conventional building environment and to be open and collaborative, the company states. Another unique building feature involves a custom mobile app for employees that will enable access to the building to control the temperature and lighting in their workspaces, and help them find their next meeting through wayfinding capabilities.

“The UTC Center for Intelligent Buildings is more than a world headquarters for our business—it’s the embodiment of our commitment to our customers,” said Bob McDonough, president, UTC Climate, Controls & Security. “This building was designed specifically to show our global customers exactly what is possible in the building technology space.”

He adds that the critical building technologies on display at the building “are typically hidden in basements, closets and on rooftops. These solutions are vital to productive, safe and secure indoor environments, and our new building is a celebration of the modern life they enable.”

Florida Gov. Rick Scott said the new UTC Center for Intelligent Buildings has already created 380 jobs and reported that UTC announced it would add another 100 positions by 2021. In 2015, the state of Florida and Palm Beach County approved nearly $11 million in incentives for the project, according to a report in the Fort Lauderdale Sun Sentinel.

State and local officials praised UTC for selecting Florida over other Southeast locations for the project. City of Palm Beach Gardens Mayor Maria Marino said the five-year local economic impact of the project has been estimated at $660 million.

“Taking advantage of the city’s tools for economic development, Carrier/UTC received their building permits in a record 58 days using our expedited permitting process,” the mayor noted. “It is every city’s dream to have this caliber of a corporation. We look forward to the success of Carrier Corporations Center for Intelligent Buildings.”

UTC unit Pratt & Whitney also has extensive operations in Palm Beach County.