Terumo BCT, Lakewood, Colorado
Courtesy Terumo BCT.
Edited by David Barth 17 April 2015. Photos were taken by David Barth, April 8 and 16, 2015.
| SHORT HISTORY OF TERUMO BCT IN LAKEWOOD, COLORADO |
|---|
| COMPANY | NOTES | YEAR |
|---|
| Terumo | Started in Japan by doctors who wanted locally-produced thermometers | 1921 |
| Cobe Laboratories | Started in California by two medical device marketing men, Bob Collins and Ran Bellows | 1964 |
| Cobe Laboratories | Moved to Lakewood, Colorado | 1967 |
| Gambro AB | Acquired Cobe Laboratories | 1990 |
| Caridian BCT | Gambro AB changed Lakewood facility name to Caridian BCT | 2008 |
| Terumo BCT | Terumo BCT, Japan's largest medical device maker, acquired Caridian BCT for USD$2.63 Billion, making Terumo BCT the world's largest maker of blood transfusion equipment | 2011 |
| Terumo BCT | Broke ground in Lakewood for 120,000 square-foot Global Headquarters building | 2014 |
| Terumo BCT | Global Headquarters building opened in Lakewood, Colorado | 2015 |
THE PHOTOS IN THIS SECTION WERE TAKEN ON APRIL 8, 2015 DURING A WALK-AROUND OF THE TERUMO BCT CAMPUS.
Terumo BCT has 5,200 associates in five manufacturing plants in 36 countries around the world.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #10] |
Simms Street runs left to right. Collins Avenue begins at this intersection and continues eastbound, behind the camera view, into the Terumo BCT complex. Collins Avenue was named for one of the two cofounders of the original company, Cobe Laboratories. The first two letters of Bob Collins' name and the first two letters of the other founder's name, Ran Bellows, were combined to form the original company name "Cobe" which was formed in 1964.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #11] |
The Lakewood Technology Center (LTC) is located just north of the Denver Federal Center on approximately 300 acres within the city of Lakewood. While the LTC is comprised mainly of industrial and flex space it is bordered on the north and south by retail and office uses. Major employers include the Terumo BCT; Abengoa Solar; Primus Metals; Jefferson County, Jeffco R-1 School District; and the Developmental Disabilities Resource Center.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #15] |
This is an artwork in the center divider of Collins Avenue. It represents a hand holding a dish. It is embellished with cave art on the near side. In the left background is Simms Street.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #20] |
This is the main sign for Terumo BCT on Simms Street and Collins Avenue. At the left of the sign is the hand art piece and on the right is the lightrail intersection called Collins Crossing. The corporate colors for Terumo BCT are green, gray, and orange.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #22] |
Collins Crossing on the lightrail tracks of the West (W) Line that runs from Union Station in downtown Denver to Golden on the west side of the metro area.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #30] |
This view, looking southeast, is of a lightrail train approaching Collins Crossing. There is a lightrail stop (Oak Street Station) adjoining the Terumo BCT campus. When the line from Union Station in downtown Denver is completed to Denver International Airport (DIA), people will be able to walk a few yards to the station and ride all the way to DIA and return with one train change at Union Station.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #31] |
Looking northeast are two trains, one heading west and the other heading east at Collins Crossing. They are actually traveling north-south at Collins Crossing because from the Oak Street Station, the tracks pass south through the Lakewood Technology Center, over a bridge that crosses 6th Avenue, and into the Federal Center before turning west toward the Lakewood Government Offices in Golden, Colorado.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #32] |
This view is looking eastward along Collins Avenue.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #33] |
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #101] |
This is an original building of Cobe Labs at 1201 Oak Street. Oak street runs north and south in this picture, looking northwest. The front entry of the building has been placed on the south side, and the company addresses have changed in response to that.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #102] |
This pedestrian access begins at Oak Street and runs westward. It used to be a street.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #103] |
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #104] |
The landscaping gives a "country" flavor to the Terumo BCT facility.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #106] |
The address of this building used to be 1185 Oak Street. It stands just south of what used to be 1201 Oak Street. Notice that the sidewalk sections have different shades to provide an artistic effect.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #107] |
The dark gray facade on the left is the main entrance, facing south. Again, note the sidewalk section shadings.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #108] |
This is another view of the main entrance.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #109] |
Trees and shrubs help reduce the harshness of the austere building facades and give the site a "countrified" look. During the summer, when the trees are leafed out, the Terumo BCT campus looks like a forest with a few buildings in it.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #110] |
Benches are strategically placed throughout the facility to enhance the park-like image.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #130] |
This is the newest building (as of April 2015) that, for the first time in eight years, allows all 2,000 employees to reside on one campus. The building has 120,000 square feet with, initially, 30,000 square feet remaining unfinished for future needs.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #131] |
This view of the new building is from the west, looking east across the City of Lakewood's Bellows Park.
HIGHLIGHTS:
- The building is 368 feet wide by 111 feet long, approximately the footprint of an NFL football field.
- It is of an open design with offices at the center to allow bright, open spaces for natural daylight along the outside window-walls.
- There are 26 conference rooms.
- 22 huddle spaces allow for ad-hoc meetings.
- There are facilities for connecting associates around the world, by phone and video.
- Light-Emitting Diode (LED) lamps are used throughout the building to conserve energy.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #132] |
Here the finishing touches were applied to the building. This and the photos above were taken on April 8, 2015, prior to the official opening and ribbon-cutting on April 16 when executives from Japan visited. It was an advantage to take the pictures on the 8th because at the official opening on April 16 the weather was rainy.
THE PHOTOS IN THIS SECTION WERE TAKEN ON APRIL 16, 2015 DURING A TOUR OF THE TERUMO BCT FACTILIY PRIOR TO THE RIBBON CUTTING CEREMONY AT THE NEW BUILDING.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #200] |
This and the following pictures were taken at the official building opening ceremony on April 16, 2015. Viewed from the building's main entry, its open design is evident.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #201] |
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #202] |
The balloons exemplify the corporate colors of Terumo BCT: Green, Gray, and Orange.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #203] |
This is Ran Bellows who, with Bob Collins, cofounded Cobe Laboratories in 1964, more than half-a-century ago. They opened the facility in Lakewood, Colorado in 1967.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #204] |
This is a testing area.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #205] |
Much of the production is automated by high-tech machines in clean rooms like this one. Note that the person at the far left, monitoring the machine, is wearing special clothing. During the latter part of the 20th Century, most construction was accomplished by manual effort.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #206] |
This is another view of a clean room where manufacturing takes place. Note the hoses running through the overhead. They expel any particulates so that the manufactured products remain clean. The air pressure in clean rooms is maintained at a slightly higher level that the ambient pressure to insure that places where air can enter, such as at a doorway, air flows out of the room and not into it. This clean room has two sections, but both are clean. The photo was taken through an air-tight window in a hallway.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #207] |
This display shows some of the products offered by the company. Note the junction area in the center of the board where fluid flows are controlled by a small computer. In processing blood, a centrifuge is needed to separate various components such as red blood cells which are heaviest. The thick cable at the lower right side of the board is a "centrifuge loop" that has the effect of a centrifuge through a straight tube.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #208] |
The building interiors are illuminated by indirect lighting which is very soothing. The lockers are for employees to store personal clothing and other items.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #210] |
This is a picture of the door that used to lead to Bob and Ran's executive offices.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #211] |
Clean rooms have "person traps" which consist of a room with a controlled atmosphere outside of the clean room where employees can change into special clothing prior to entering the clean room. This photo was taken through a glass door in the hallway.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #212] |
In this picture, taken through a glass door, a mirror is seen where clean room workers can check their special clothing to ensure it is secure at all transition sites such as at wrists and at the neck.
THE PHOTOS IN THIS SECTION WERE TAKEN ON APRIL 16, 2015 FOR THE OFFICIAL OPENING CEREMONY AND RIBBON CUTTING FOR THE NEW TERUMO BCT WORLD HEADQUARTERS BUILDING ON COLLINS AVENUE.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #213] |
During the day there was an open house for VIPs and employees to tour the new building. The invited public came for the official opening ceremony and ribbon cutting.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #214] |
This is the main entry illustrating the open design of the building.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #215] |
Here a technician does a mic check prior to the beginning of the ceremony.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #216] |
The food and drinks were plentiful.
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| Terumo BCT [Photo #217]. |
This is the top executive from the Japan office waiting to speak after president and CEO David Perez's talk.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #218] |
A large crowd was on hand to witness the opening ceremony.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #219] |
A shot of the building across the street shows it was an overcast, rainy day. The ribbon cutting ceremony, originally scheduled to be done outdoors, was held inside.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #220] |
President and CEO David Perez made a short talk about the building; the employees; and the builder, Swinerton that delivered the building on time and on budget. Ground was broken on April 1, 2013 and the building was turned over to Terumo BCT 360 days later, quite an accomplishment for a three-story, 120,000 square foot structure. Mr. Perez mentioned that Terumo BCT is committed to treating its employees right. Each employee receives a free RTD pass to use public transportation: busses and lightrail. The company has a cafeteria and this new building has a sandwich/drink kiosk if an employee doesn't wish to go to the cafeteria.
At the left of the picture is Lakewood Mayor Bob Murphy wearing a gray suit and glasses. Several other Lakewood officials were in attendance.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #221] |
This is a closer view of David Perez making a point. He is an excellent speaker and the audience enjoyed his talk, interjected with humorous comments.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #222a] |
In addition to Lakewood Mayor Bob Murphy, David Wiechman, representative of Lakewood's fourth Ward, was on site for the ceremony.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #233] |
During the talks, former company high-level executives listened intently. Sitting in the center is Ran Bellows, cofounder of the original company, Cobe Laboratories.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #225] |
Following president and CEO David Perez's talk, the top executive from Japan spoke, sprinkling his talk with humor.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #226] |
Here, two former executives hold the green ribbon while the executive from Japan and David Perez cut it, signifying the official opening of the new building. Ran Bellows is at the far left holding one end of the ribbon.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #227] |
The executives, past and present, congratulate each other. President and CEO David Perez is at the left, wearing the dark suit.
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| Terumo BCT. [Photo #228] |
This is a satellite view of the Terumo BCT complex. It was imaged on October 6, 2014. The elevation of the image is 5,582 feet above mean sea level. The eye view is effectively from an altitude of 8,759 feet above sea level.
The three buildings with white roofs at the center of the picture are the primary Terumo BCT facilities. The two large buldings just to the right of center of the picture are the original buildings buiilt by Cobe Labratories in the mid-1960s. They are along Oak Street which runs north and south just to the right of them.
A road that used to run east-west from Simms Street at the left to Oak Street at the right was terminated in the cul de sac at the center of the picture. It is now called Collins Avenue.
The section of the road that ran between the two large buildings was turned into a pedestrian access with pleasant landscaping including shrubs, trees, flowers, and benches for the enjoyment of employeers and visitors.
The long building, slightly canted, to the left of the large buildings is a 120,000 square foot, three-story building that opened in 2015 as the Global Headquarters of Terumo BCT, a Japan-owned company. It sits on the south side of Collins Avenue. To the left of that building, running north and south is Quail Street. The street at the far left of the picture, also running north-south, is Simms Street.
The green area on the southwest corner of Quail Street and Collins Avenue is Bellows Park, consisting of a 10 acre area given to the City of Lakewood as a green belt and park. The park follows Lakewood Gulch that has the light-colored sidewalk running beside it from Collins Avenue on the left side of the park. The sidewalk follows Lakewood Gulch diagonally southeast, to Quail Street and then eastward to Oak Street. The gulch continues beyond Oak Street into Sunset Park on the far right of the picture.
At the top of the image, running from the upper right and curving around to the lower left, is the West lightrail right of way. Near the top of the curve is a light-colored area that is the lightrail line's Oak Street Station.
Global Coordinates:
The global coordinates of Terumo BCT are 39 degrees, 44 minutes, 05.77 seconds North Latitude and 105 degrees, 07 minutes, 18.45 seconds West Longitude.
SOURCES:
- "The Lakewood Historian," the journal of the Lakewood Historical Society, Winter 2009, which can be seen at www.lakewoodcohistory.
- Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
- City of Lakewood at:
www.lakewood.org/City_Managers_Office/
Economic_Development/
Real_Estate_and_Development_Activity/
Employment_Centers/Lakewood_Tech_Center.aspx.
- Google Earth for the overhead image.
AMENITIES:
- State Enterprise Zone designation.
- Bellows Park runs east-west along the Lakewood Gulch and consists of 10 acres of land given by the company's forebears to the City of Lakewood.
- RTD Oak Street lightrail station north of the Terumo BCT complex.
- Scheduled RTD bus service along West Colfax Avenue, Simms Street, and Kipling Street.
- The Terumo BCT complex is located along a regional bike trail.
- Colorado Mills Shopping Center is just 2 miles west on West Colfax Avenue.
- Close proximity to a wide range of restaurants and fast food alternatives.
ACCESS:
Access to Terumo BCT is via Sixth Avenue (U.S. 6) turning northbound on Kipling Street or Simms Street. West Colfax Avenue is another route to get to the complex.
TERUMO BCT CONTACT INFORMATION:
Information Technology
445 S Allison Parkway
Lakewood, CO 80226
Direct: 303-987-7676
Requested corrections or additions/deletions may be sent to dvbarth@aol.com.
HISTORY OF COBE LABORATORIES:
See www.fundinguniverse.com/
company-histories/
cobe-laboratories-inc-history/