Business & Tech

Christie Christens New Bayer Headquarters

700,000 sq. ft. building consolidates offices from Morris Township, Montville, Wayne and Tarrytown, N.Y.

A century and a half of progress compressed into song. 

That is what the Whippany Park High School marching band provided Bayer HealthCare after Governor Chris Christie cut the ribbon on their new HealthCare Headquarters in Whippany on Wednesday. 

The event was the capstone on their anniversary year which saw the company introduce five new drugs as part of the 150 year anniversary celebration. 

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The ceremony officially opened Bayer's new 700,000 sq. ft. office building, which in fact are two buildings connected by a 5-story glass atrium and sits on 95 acres.  This facility will relocatesabout 2,500 employees from Bayer offices in Morris Township, Montville, Wayne and Tarrytown, N.Y., to the new site.

"Bayer represents the corporate culture that we want across this country and around the world,” Christie said. “An openness and collaboration of bringing of people together, something that we need in this country more than we ever needed before."

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According to Phil Blake, president of Bayer Corporation, the new office comes with a price tag of $250 million.

“450 engineers and contractors worked to create this outstanding building,” Blake said. 

Blake said from ground breaking to opening took about a year to get the "spectacular" building finished. 

“We’re on budget, on time, ready to move in, ready to do great work" Blake said. 

Marign Dekkers, CEO and chairman of the Bayer AG Group, Board of Management said the new consolidated site allows employees to “work more closely together.”

“We’re now going to have our whole healthcare team in the U.S. all together practically in this building." Dekkers said. "It’s an enormous opportunity for you to gel and to really see what kind of positive energy and advantage we can take of this situation.”

The pharmaceutical company’s move is designed to consolidate Bayer HealthCare's East Coast business onto the former site of Alcatel-Lucent, previously Bell Labs. Officials at Bayer said that the bulk of it the move is done and 2,400 employees are at the new facility and about 100 are still “scattered” around.

Morris Township will be the only facility they’re keeping open with some permanent employees. Tarrytown has two properties, one the company has moved out of and the lease on the other has yet to end. Montville has two buildings that will close as does Wayne. 

“I also convinced that we will become a more attractive employer as a result of us all now being together in this building," added Dekker.

The new facility features items such as charging stations for electric cars, nearly three miles of walking paths inside and outside, training center, medical suite, mothers' room, company store, cafe, indoor/outdoor dining, pantries and more. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification built and designed the buildings. The new facility has 173 conference rooms and 215 collaboration spaces.

“New Jersey has a long and rich heritage as the hub of the pharmaceutical industry in the United States,” said Christie. “Since taking office, my administration has put in place business-friendly policies so that companies like Bayer can continue to grow in New Jersey.”

By “combining operations from three divisions, Bayer is bringing together 2,400 employees in Whippany, making the company the largest employer in the city,” according to Bayer HealthCare.  

“Although the aim of this project is to bring our employees together in one location, this initiative is about growing together as well as building the brand and reputation of our company,” said Dekkers. “Whippany is our footprint on the East Coast now, as we invest further in the U.S."




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