High-Tech Installers In Design-Build Process

By JOE BRITTON
San Diego Daily Transcript

A common misperception among new tenants is that they can move into a high-tech building, literally "plug-in" and have all of their communication and networking needs met.

But while building owners and developers are increasingly linking their buildings to the outside world by providing access to data transmission systems, the majority of what makes a building high-tech is done behind the scenes and usually paid for by the tenants or as design-build projects.

"Typically much of the infrastructure work is being done after tenants sign the lease on their space," said Trestand Conrique, president of Rancho Santa Fe Technology, a San Diego-based provider of voice and data cabling systems and network infrastructures since 1991 that has provided much of the structured cabling, technology upgrades and service contracts to local companies looking to maximize their communications capabilities.

Conrique sees an increasing need for companies to have access to information, and in order for them to increase the speed of their communications, the companies need to upgrade their current systems or move into a location more suitable to their technology needs.

Data transmission systems typically are short-lived, according to Conrique, and only four to five years can pass before the technology is outdated and companies need to update their systems. With the rapid change in technology, companies are looking to maintain their edge by keeping their network systems flexible.

To accommodate the company's individual voice and data needs, Conrique said many companies are beginning to favor a design-build approach in order to maximize their returns on technology expenditures.

"Ideally, what will happen is the building owner will have us working with the tenant from concept to implementation," he said.

By utilizing a design-build approach, companies are able to achieve all their technology requirements and minimize expenses.

"In any given company, one individual moves 7 times a year, and with every move comes an investment in infrastructure. If you plan ahead, you minimize investment in that infrastructure," Conrique said.

In a design-build transaction, Conrique said that Rancho Santa Fe Technology "can provide as much as 10 to 15 percent savings if they can get in early in the project and work from concept to implementation."

One project Rancho Santa Fe Technology recently completed was the installation of a structured cabling system for the Novartis biotech facility in La Jolla. The company was retained by DPR Construction, the general contractor for Novartis' new West Coast facility that houses the its Institute for Functional Genomics and the Agricultural Discovery Institute.

According to Conrique, Rancho Santa Fe Technology completed the installation of a sophisticated voice/data structured cabling system in the two-story 80,000 square foot building. In order to satisfy Novartis' design needs, the company installed more than 800,000 linear feet, or 151 miles of high-speed data-transmission cables to network 825 workstations.

The data-cabling company also teamed up with Cox Communications in the design, installation and upgrades of the structured cabling, network systems and local area networks in several of Cox's facilities.

Conrique believes building owners and tenants are "looking for flexibility and being able to quickly modify network systems while minimizing the cost," but they are going to be taking on the majority of the costs involved with updating space to accommodate high-speed data communication.

joe.britton@sddt.com