Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. announced today that it is expanding its presence in Birmingham and plans to open a new office on Colmore Square in the city centreâs business district in Autumn 2015.
Jacobs is consolidating expertise from two locations across Birmingham into the new, central office, which provides capacity for 200-300 employees for a first phase expansion. Jacobs is to fit the premises and intends to secure it for the long term future.
One of the world’s largest and most diverse providers of technical professional, and construction services, Jacobs delivers major programmes of work across the highways, rail, aviation, automotive, utilities, energy, buildings and other sectors, both locally and globally.
Jacobs Group Vice President Bob Duff stated, This new location in the heart of Birmingham and close to the regionâs leading education providers furthers our long term commitment to the Midlands. Our larger premises enable Jacobs to continue to grow our local service provision next to our core customers, supported by our local education partners; and we are well positioned to service the developing HS2 programme. We are investing significantly in our Birmingham operations, with further phased expansion planned, which will support the regionâs exciting vision to be a thriving economic hub.
We expect this growth to yield greater opportunities for our existing employees and for new recruits, including graduates and apprentices, to enhance and develop their skills.
Sir Albert Bore, leader of Birmingham City Council, said: Birmingham is at the heart of HS2, the UKâs most ambitious transport infrastructure project. There is already a strong sense of opportunity around HS2, and its forthcoming arrival is drawing global firms like Jacobs to the region.
Some of the UKâs leading universities are located in Birmingham, and Jacobsâ commitment to training the next generation of engineers in the region will only help to solidify Birminghamâs competitiveness on the world-stage. Jacobsâ investment will bring jobs to the region and help to accelerate our strong economic growth.
Mark Rogers, chief executive of Birmingham City Council, said, Birmingham has spent the past decade transforming itself into a global city, and weâre attracting record investment as a result of this hard work. Birminghamâs business district showcases the fruition of this investment, and Jacobsâ new office will be in the heart of this thriving area.
Jacobs is one of the worldâs leading engineering and project management firms, and its expansion into Birmingham showcases the vast talent pool available in the region. Jacobs is taking advantage of the engineering and manufacturing expertise already on offer in the region and helping to create a lasting skills legacy through its training programme.
Wouter Schuitemaker, Investment Director at the cityâs inward investment agency Business Birmingham, commented: Jacobs is joining the record number of global companies flocking to Birmingham. Todayâs announcement will cement Jacobsâ commitment to the region, create new job opportunities and boost Birminghamâs credentials as a world-class manufacturing hub.
Firms like Jacobs are increasingly turning to Birmingham to work on nationally significant infrastructure projects and to recruit from one the largest pools of skilled workers in the country. We believe that investment of this kind from such a well-regarded global business will be of immense benefit to the UK economy.
As one of Britainâs leading technical services providers, Jacobs is a significant contributor of expertise to the region. Jacobs is a major service provider to clients such as Highways England, Severn Trent Water, several regional local authorities, Network Rail, and the majority of the Midlands-based motorsport firms.
The Company works on some of Britainâs most strategic projects, including Crossrail, HS1, Blackfriars Station, and Heathrow Airport.
