New-Tech Firm Breaks Mold With 125,000-SF Acquisition

HAVERHILL, MA-In terms of dollars or feet it’s not the state’s biggest deal. But Alpha Industries’ purchase of a 125,000-sf industrial facility here was a milestone for the new owner and provides insight to how brokers might better handle new-tech clients.

Alpha last week closed on its $8.75-million purchase of 25 Computer Dr., complete with 41 acres of developable land. Wang Labs developed the old-tech manufacturing facility in 1985. In an exclusive interview with GlobeSt.com, Alpha president and CEO David Aldrich explains that the buy was a major departure for Alpha, which produces semiconductors for wireless and broadband applications.

“Our strategy is not to own a lot of real estate,” he says. “We can use that money to grow our business and provide far greater returns than owning a lot of land. We chose to buy here because it allowed us to do what we wanted without paying the cost of capital in a sale/leaseback.” For the record, Alpha owns or leases more than 400,000 sf in California, Maryland and Massachusetts.