TECHNOLOGY TOOLBOX

ast- growing companies in such sectors as high tech, life sciences and finance have a fast- growing work- space need that can disrupt operations and compromise competitive advantage. Intelligent space planning is critical to such companies’ ability to keep projects on track, because they are interrupted less

frequently by work space and other organizational changes.

   Wallace C. Singleton Jr., senior manager for construction and site planning at Applied Biosystems in Foster City, Calif., uses Manhattan Centerstone’s eCenter software to address that very issue.

   “It has helped considerably in space management,” Singleton says. “It’s a useful tool in analyzing our current and future needs and helps in programming new sites and spaces. It also helps us make projections.”

   Applied Biosystems, a developer of instruments and software for life science applications, has properties around the globe, including an application- support center that recently opened in Shanghai. The real estate portfolio also includes the headquarters and facilities in the Czech Republic and Brazil.

   Applied Biosystems has used Web- based eCenter for more than a year. Singleton prefers a Web- based system because it doesn’t require having individual software licenses for each PC and it can be accessed anywhere in the world.

   The company’s real estate group uses eCenter for monitoring lease data, while the maintenance team recently began using it for implementation of work orders. While he is generally pleased with the software, Singleton says he would like to see some enhancements to its reporting capabilities.

   Manhattan, part of London- based Raindrop Information Systems, acquired Centerstone in November 2006. At that time, Ross Leibowitz, founder of Centerstone, became president and CTO of Manhattan Centerstone. Leibowitz says Manhattan Centerstone’s software allows companies to develop projects – and therefore products – at a much faster pace.

   “By managing real estate properly, corporations get to start products and services sooner,” Leibowitz says. “For example, a company launching a new research project needs to pull together different people, such as researchers and a support staff. They often want everyone to be in a contiguous area. By managing real estate, you know where the space is. It takes a lot of time and money to reconfigure something. Repositioning current assets can be done much quicker than bringing on new assets.”

The tools in Manhattan Centerstone’s eCenter software have helped Applied Biosystems analyze future needs while also helping the company program current sites and spaces.

   Manhattan Centerstone releases upgrades about twice a year. These are developed with the input of customers through user conferences and regular conversations with clients.

   “We find out what’s working and then sit down and talk about process improvements,” Leibowitz says. “We look at the time it takes to do a space reconfiguration and a move of 50 people. We analyze the human steps, looking for areas causing the most pain, and we automate that.”

   Manhattan’s reach is global, with products also used by companies in Europe and Australia and plans to expand into Asia and the Middle East. The company has offices in each of the regions it serves.

   Manhattan Centerstone products are available either through a perpetual software license and on a subscription basis that averages about three years, Leibowitz says. Providing software such as eCenter on an ASP basis allows the various vendors participating in a corporation’s move to become involved. Future developments will involve planning processes.

   “When I speak to real estate executives, they tell me they want to plan, but changes are coming too quickly,” Leiboiwitz says. “They want more planning tools built into their lines of business to determine future needs, not in terms of real estate but in their lines of business.”

   Among the developments Manhattan Centerstone has in the works are stacking diagrams that will allow users to see floors of a building and lines of business to show how space is being used.

   “We’re working on more interactive stacking tools,” Leibowitz says. “In today’s environment, businesses should not be limited by the physical confines of a building. We are looking at all of a company’s assets and creating plans that aren’t necessarily confined to physical structures.”