Merck Headquarters Building

Last updated
Merck & Co., Inc. World Headquarters
MerckHQ-cropped.png
Aerial view
Merck Headquarters Building
General information
Type Corporate headquarters
Architectural style Modernist
Location Whitehouse Station in Readington, New Jersey, United States
Address1 Merck Drive, Lebanon, New Jersey
Coordinates 40°38′27″N74°46′39″W / 40.640824°N 74.777627°W / 40.640824; -74.777627 Coordinates: 40°38′27″N74°46′39″W / 40.640824°N 74.777627°W / 40.640824; -74.777627
Construction started1989
Completed1990
Inaugurated1992
Owner UNICOM Science and Technology Park, Inc.
Technical details
Floor count3 [1]
Floor area1,600,000 sq ft (150,000 m2), i.e. 900,000 sq ft (84,000 m2) of office space, 700,000 sq ft (65,000 m2) underground parking [2]
Design and construction
Architect(s) Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates, LLC [1]
Civil engineer Clarke & Rapuano [3]
Other designersEdmund Hollander and Maryanne Connelly [3]

The former Merck & Co. headquarters building is a modernist office building located in the Whitehouse Station section of Readington Township, New Jersey, United States. [4] It was designed by Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates, LLC in the late 1980s for the Merck & Co. pharmaceutical company. [5] Over the years it became well known for its various environmentally friendly features.

Contents

On October 9, 2012, Merck & Co. announced that starting in 2014 it would move its headquarters to the Schering-Plough site (formerly belonging to Ciba, Ciba-Geigy and Novartis) in Summit, New Jersey, acquired in the November 2009 acquisition of Schering, and planned to close the Whitehouse Station headquarters building upon completion of the move in 2015. In October, 2013 Merck & Co. reversed course and said its headquarters would move to Kenilworth, New Jersey and that the 88-acre Summit campus would be sold after being vacated on Dec. 31, 2014. [6] [7]

On July 12, 2018, UNICOM Global announced that their division UNICOM Corporation had signed an agreement with Merck & Co. to purchase the entire Merck property at Whitehouse Station, with the acquisition expected to close in October, 2018. [8] The completion of the acquisition was announced on October 1, 2018. The property was renamed UNICOM Science and Technology Park (USTP). [9]

Building history

Constructed in 1990 as a home for the headquarters staff of Merck & Co., the building is most recognizable for its hexagon shape and its nature setting. [2] [3] The main building was constructed with a 600-foot (180 m) wide clearing at its center, filled with old-growth trees saved during the construction phase. [3] Further, Merck & Co. placed the parking structure underground and created a temporary nursery on-site for the trees removed during construction, in order to make the facility a "corporate cottage in the woods". [3] The building was originally set on 460 acres (190 ha) of property and has since been expanded to a 1,000-acre (4.0 km2) campus with auxiliary buildings. [1] [10] The initial site plan foresaw the subsequent addition of two buildings to create a grid of three connected hexagons, however, after a change in management, it was indicated that further construction in the original style would not occur. [1] [11] Instead a conventional office block was built adjacent to it known as "Whitehouse Station West".

In the center of the building there is a park with a small lawned sitting area containing a statue given by Merck Germany.

Prior to moving to this location, the Merck & Co. headquarters was located in Rahway, New Jersey. The Whitehouse Station campus is located on an old dairy farm and the surrounding area is known as a more suburban/rural setting than the area around the Rahway campus. [4] [12] As a result, Merck & Co. included amenities such as on-site child-care, a fitness center, baseball fields, and a medical services center for employees. [12]

Solar initiative

In 2008, Merck & Co. installed a 1.6-megawatt solar power system consisting of 7,000 panels on 7 acres (2.8 ha) of property. [13] Among the largest installations at a corporate headquarters, the system is also the largest ground-mounted solar power tracking system east of the Mississippi River. [14] In all, it will provide 7% of the site's power and is expected to "reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than 1,300 tons per year." [14]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin Roche</span> Irish-born American architect (1922–2019)

Eamonn Kevin Roche was an Irish-born American Pritzker Prize-winning architect. He was responsible for the design/master planning for over 200 built projects in both the U.S. and abroad. These projects include eight museums, 38 corporate headquarters, seven research facilities, performing arts centers, theaters, and campus buildings for six universities. In 1967 he created the master plan for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and thereafter designed all of the new wings and installation of many collections including the reopened American and Islamic wings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Union County, New Jersey</span> County in New Jersey, United States

Union County is a county in the northern part of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the county was state's seventh-most-populous county with a population of 575,345, an increase of 38,846 (+7.2%) from the 2010 census count of 536,499. Its county seat is Elizabeth, which is also the most populous municipality in the county. The county is located in the North Jersey region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Readington Township, New Jersey</span> Township in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States

Readington Township is a township located in the easternmost portion of Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 16,126, reflecting an increase of 323 (+2.0%) from the 15,803 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 2,403 (+17.9%) from the 13,400 counted in the 1990 Census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whitehouse Station, New Jersey</span> Census-designated place in New Jersey, United States

Whitehouse Station, also spelled White House Station, is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located within Readington Township, in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. At the 2010 United States Census, the CDP's population was 2,089. Whitehouse Station takes its name from Whitehouse and Abraham Van Horne's 18th century tavern.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenilworth, New Jersey</span> Borough in Union County, New Jersey, United States

Kenilworth is a borough in Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 8,427, an increase of 513 (+6.5%) from the 2010 census count of 7,914, which in turn reflected an increase of 239 (+3.1%) from the 7,675 counted in the 2000 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rahway, New Jersey</span> City in Union County, New Jersey, United States

Rahway is a city in southern Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A bedroom community of New York City, it is centrally located in the Rahway Valley region, in the New York metropolitan area. The city is 21.6 miles (34.8 km) southwest of Manhattan and 5 miles (8.0 km) west of Staten Island.

Schering-Plough Corporation was an American pharmaceutical company. It was originally the U.S. subsidiary of the German company Schering AG, which was founded in 1851 by Ernst Christian Friedrich Schering. As a result of nationalization, it became an independent company. In 1971, the Schering Corporation merged with Plough to form Schering-Plough. On November 4, 2009 Merck & Co. merged with Schering-Plough with the new company taking the name of Merck & Co.

Roche-Dinkeloo, otherwise known as Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates LLC (KRJDA), is an architectural firm based in Hamden, Connecticut founded in 1966.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rahway Valley Railroad</span>

The Rahway Valley Railroad (RVRR) was a short-line railroad in the Northeastern United States which connected the Lehigh Valley Railroad in Roselle Park and the Central Railroad of New Jersey in Cranford with the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western in Summit. Operating over a span of 95 years (1897–1992) in Union County, New Jersey, in its prime it was one of the most successful shortline railroads in U.S. history, turning a profit during the Great Depression. During its lifetime, the RVRR was instrumental in the development of Kenilworth as well as Union Township, Springfield and other towns along its route. Later years saw traffic decline; in 1986 the line could not secure liability insurance. The railroad was sold to the Delaware Otsego Corporation which did little to revitalize the nearly 90-year-old line. Traffic continued to decline until service ended in 1992, with a single customer remaining.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">P. Roy Vagelos</span>

Pindaros Roy Vagelos, better known as P. Roy Vagelos or Roy Vagelos, is an American physician and business executive, who was president and chief executive officer (1985) and chairman (1986) of the American pharmaceutical company Merck & Co..

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White House station</span>

White House is a NJ Transit railroad station on the Raritan Valley Line, in the Whitehouse Station section of Readington in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. The station is on the west side of Main Street in the center and the station building has subsequently been turned into a branch library for the Hunterdon County Library system. This station has no weekend service.

Organon & Co. is an American pharmaceutical company headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey. Organon specializes in the following core therapeutic fields: reproductive medicine, contraception, psychiatry, hormone replacement therapy (HRT), and anesthesia. Organon sells to international markets.

Fred Hassan, is a Pakistan-born American business executive who works for Warburg Pincus and was CEO of three global pharmaceutical companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">IBM Somers Office Complex</span> Corporate Offices in Somers, NY

The IBM Somers Office Complex is a complex of five office buildings formerly owned and occupied by IBM in Somers, New York, United States. Situated on a 730-acre (3.0 km2) campus, the I. M. Pei designed, glass pyramid-topped structures formerly housed the regional headquarters for the IBM corporation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coppertone (sunscreen)</span> Brand name for an American sunscreen

Coppertone is the brand name for an American sunscreen. Coppertone is headquartered in Whippany, New Jersey. Coppertone uses a variety of branding, including the Coppertone girl logo and a distinctive fragrance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merck & Co.</span> American multinational pharmaceutical company

Merck & Co., Inc. is an American multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Rahway, New Jersey, and is named for Merck Group, founded in Germany in 1668, of whom it was once the American arm. The company does business as Merck Sharp & Dohme or MSD outside the United States and Canada.

Merck headquarters may refer to

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UNICOM Global</span> US-based IT company

UNICOM Global is an American multinational technology corporation headquartered in Mission Hills, California. The company was founded by Corry Hong in Los Angeles, California in 1981 to develop AUTOMON/CICS and related products for the CICS mainframe marketplace. UNICOM Global has grown since then by acquiring publicly-traded and private IT organizations and products, and through property acquisition. Corry Hong was born in Seoul, South Korea and immigrated to the United States at age 20, studying computer science at Pierce College in Los Angeles. He is the CEO and president of the company.

Lenape Park is a 450-acre wildlife reserve and park that is part of the Rahway River Parkway in Union County, New Jersey. The park is located in four towns: Westfield, Springfield, Kenilworth, and Cranford.

Edmund David Hollander is an American landscape architect and educator. The New York City native is president of Hollander Design Landscape Architects, a New York-based firm incorporating environmental planning, landscape design and horticulture which has provided services for residential, commercial and public projects. Hollander has taught extensively at the Graduate School of Fine Arts at the University of Pennsylvania and at City College of New York. The cornerstone of Hollander's landscape practice is his theory of The Three Ecologies: Ecology of site, Human Ecology, and the Ecology of Architecture. As Hollander wrote in the introduction to his most recent book The Good Garden: “A powerful landscape unfolds like a story. Your land is your home and within your home is the house."

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates. "Merck & Co., Inc. World Headquarters" . Retrieved 2017-05-23.
  2. 1 2 TAC (2006). "A Prescription for Continued Satisfaction — Merck's Worldwide Headquarters Chooses Andover Continuum". REFRIGE.com. Retrieved 2008-10-10.[ dead link ]
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Raver, Anne (1991-12-22). "Cuttings; Corporate Cottage, Deep in a Forest". NYT. Retrieved 2008-10-10.
  4. 1 2 Peterson, Iver (1992-11-15). "A Company Move That Hasn't Irked the Neighbors". NYT. Retrieved 2008-10-10.
  5. ↑ Foundation Software (2000). "Who is using Foundation". Archived from the original on 2008-10-22. Retrieved 2008-10-10.
  6. ↑ Merck (2012). "Merck to Move Global Headquarters Within New Jersey" . Retrieved 2012-10-09.
  7. ↑ Friedman, Alexi. "In about-face, Merck will shutter Summit campus and make Kenilworth its headquarters", The Star-Ledger , October 1, 2013. Accessed October 16, 2013.
  8. ↑ UNICOM Global. "UNICOM® Corporation to Acquire Property Located at Whitehouse Station, New Jersey", UNICOM Global , July 12, 2018. Accessed July 16, 2018.
  9. ↑ UNICOM Global. "UNICOM Global acquires the Merck Property Located at Whitehouse Station, New Jersey", UNICOM Global , October 1, 2018. Accessed October 24, 2018.
  10. ↑ O'Brien, Walter (2008-09-02). "Merck headquarters in Readington to harness the sun with new solar panels". MyCentralJersey.com. Retrieved 2008-10-10.
  11. ↑ Bowe, Christoper (2006-11-26). "Raising Merck's threshold of pain". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 2008-10-22. Retrieved 2008-10-10.
  12. 1 2 Mansnerus, Laura (1999-11-21). "It Takes a Village To Make an Office. Ask Mother Merck". NYT. Retrieved 2008-10-10.
  13. ↑ RenewableEnergyWorld.com (2008-08-15). "1.6-MW Solar System Being Built at Merck Headquarters" . Retrieved 2008-10-10.
  14. 1 2 UTC Power (2008-08-14). "Largest Ground-Mounted Solar Power Tracking System East of Mississippi River Being Built at Merck & Co., Inc. Headquarters". Thomson Reuters. Archived from the original on 2008-10-22. Retrieved 2008-10-10.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.