One of the world’s leading developers, manufacturers, and global suppliers of scientific laboratory products has leased space in CenterPoint Commerce & Trade Park in Jenkins Township, Luzerne County.
Corning Life Sciences has leased 396,800 square feet at 160 Research Drive from Mericle Commercial Real Estate Services. The company is using the facility for warehousing and distribution.
The move follows a two-year process that saw Corning look at numerous buildings in several Northeast U.S. states. The company’s goal was to find a facility that would accommodate its model for a state-of-the-art distribution center.
The CenterPoint facility was constructed on speculation by Mericle in 2009 and can be expanded to 620,000 square feet. It was one of the first buildings constructed by Mericle in CenterPoint’s Phase IIB expansion area.
Mericle Vice President Bill Jones said the building had the specific features Corning was seeking. “Our building provides Corning with an excellent opportunity to gain significant operational efficiencies,” said Jones. “The building is unique to the region in that it offers very high ceilings, deep truck courts, energy-efficient lighting fixtures and an ESFR fire protection system. Our design team and project management group was able to provide Corning with a very workable solution to their supply chain needs,” he said.
Corning was represented in the real estate transaction by Michael Bartolacci and The Garibaldi Group.
The Corning project is the latest example of a major company recognizing CenterPoint’s value as a logistics hub. Corning joins The Home Depot, Lowe’s, Boden, and Bimbo Bakeries as one of several firms that have established major distribution operations in the park in recent years. CenterPoint is now home to 24 tenants that employ approximately 2,500 workers. Close to 5.3 million square feet has been built in the park over the past five years.
Mericle Commercial Real Estate Services, founded by Rob Mericle, is a vertically-integrated company with more than 200 in-house professionals with expertise in all aspects of commercial real estate development and construction. The Mericle team includes licensed architects, land planners, professional engineers, surveyors, licensed electricians, plumbers, carpenters, certified public accountants, in-house legal counsel, leasing and marketing professionals, licensed brokers, property managers, and more.