West Milwaukee-based Rexnord Corp. is the latest company to commit to leasing space at the Global Water Center in Milwaukee.
Rexnord will lease 4,300 square feet of space on the third floor of the building. The company will use the space for its water management platform, said Rachel Wilberding, spokeswoman for the Milwaukee Water Council.
Rexnord’s Water Management platform designs, procures, manufactures and markets products that provide and enhance water quality, safety, flow control and conservation.
Rexnord formed its Water Management platform in 2007 with the acquisition of Zurn, a leader across a diverse set of markets and products. They continued to build the platform with three other acquisitions, including VAG Holding GmbH in 2011. The combined businesses generate more than $700 million in revenue and conduct business in 35 countries around the world.
“Our leading brands, broad product portfolio and strong global presence position us as an industry leader in water, wastewater and power generation markets,” said Todd A. Adams,
Rexnord president and CEO. “We are excited to bring this expertise to the Global Water Center.”
Water Council president and CEO Dean Amhaus said he is enthusiastic about Rexnord’s expanded involvement in Milwaukee’s water technology cluster.
“What is particularly exciting is that we can now welcome another large international company into the Global Water Center,” Amhaus said. “It is important for us to create a dynamic ecosystem within the building that is fostering the exchange of ideas and talent that benefit large and small businesses as well as academic commercialization research.”
The Global Water Center is being built in a seven-story, 98,000-square-foot, 106-year-old warehouse at 223 W. Pittsburgh Ave. in Milwaukee’s Walker’s Point neighborhood. The $22 million project is expected to be complete in July. The Water Council will be the first tenant and will move in on July 15, Wilberding said.
The building is more than 75 percent leased, Wilberding said. It is intended to be a water technology business accelerator center, a critical piece of efforts to establish Milwaukee as a global water technology hub.
The tenants will be a mix of larger firms, smaller firms, start-ups, business professional organizations and university researchers. Besides Rexnord and The Water Council, other tenants committed to the building include: Badger Meter Inc., A.O. Smith corp., the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, the Greater Milwaukee Committee and the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp.
