Area Development
Jones Lang LaSalle, a Chicago-based professional services and investment management firm offering specialized real estate services, has been appointed the exclusive real estate service provider for Volkswagen Group of America.

Jones Lang LaSalle will provide the automaker with commercial real estate services, including integrated facility management, transaction management, lease administration, strategic consulting and project management.

The new agreement encompasses VWGoA's locations in 11 states, including development and technical facilities; ports and post-production facilities; parts distribution centers; financial service centers and its headquarters facility. The contract includes Volkswagen’s five-million-square-foot corporate real estate portfolio, including more than 65 office, technical and distribution sites, as well as dealership locations in 20 U.S. states.

"Automakers face a highly-competitive environment in today's global marketplace," said Ken Koupal, Managing Director, JLL. "With this expansion of our business relationship, our team will apply innovative real estate solutions to enhance Volkswagen Group of America's overall productivity and business performance."

“We will deliver both cost savings and innovative solutions to help Volkswagen achieve its goals and improve the productivity of its facilities and business overall. Our service delivery platform includes portfolio optimization, strategic sourcing, smart building management services, and other components designed to maximize the efficiency of facility management and operation,” Koupal told Area Development Online.

“Our goal in outsourcing agreements is to employ and retain the client’s facilities staff and augment their institutional knowledge with our expertise. This approach produces the best solutions for the client and also provides an attractive career path for the employees that transition to JLL,” he explained.

“We have worked with Volkswagen Group since 2009 and are pleased to be working further with the company. We have had a productive relationship and look forward to helping the company manage its corporate real estate assets for competitive advantage,” Koupal added.

Globally, JLL has already been one of Volkswagen Group's partners for real estate services since 2009. JLL has completed a broad range of projects and transactions throughout Volkswagen Group's portfolio of brands covering all asset types, including warehouses, office and retail space in Europe, Asia, Africa and South America.

Over the last 10 years, JLL has worked with VWGoA on its headquarters relocation from Auburn Hills, Michigan, to Herndon, Virginia, as well as site selection for its 2.5-million-square-foot assembly plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee.