French electricity distribution and automation management giant Schneider Electric has officially opened the doors of its North American research and development center in Andover, Massachusetts (just north of Boston), which will also serve as the company’s new North American headquarters.
Its current U.S. address is in Palatine, Illinois, a small town northeast of Chicago.
Schneider is one of the world’s largest suppliers of mechanical and electrical infrastructure products for data centers. Its portfolio for data centers includes everything from uninterruptible power supplies and cooling systems to data center infrastructure management software.
The Boston One Campus has capacity to accommodate about 750 employees, and Laurent Vernerey, president and CEO of the company’s operations in North America, will relocate there.
This is Schneider’s first R&D center in the U.S. It joins existing centers in Bangalore, Shanghai, Grenoble (France) and Monterrey (Mexico).
There are two buildings, comprising 240,000 square feet. It has a Discovery Center where visitors can learn about the company and its products and 53,000 square feet of engineering laboratory space, where its engineers test and validate customer solutions.
Schneider built the campus using about $8 million worth of its own products to demonstrate its energy efficiency and sustainable design capabilities. The facility is LEED Silver certified.
Among energy efficiency solutions deployed are the company’s SmartStruxure building management system, EcoAisle and EcoBreeze data center cooling systems, its data center and server UPS units, Altivar variable-speed air conditioning control and other products.
“As we imagined the design of the new campus, it was important to us to leverage our own technology and create a facility that enhances our customers’ experience while exemplifying Schneider Electric’s core objective of making the most of our energy,” Varnier said in a statement.
