Sodexo Accelerates VGC Built Its Future Office Block “V-Space”
To ensure smooth completion and operation of the new headquarters of Volkswagen Group China (VGC for short), Sodexo, joined hands with VGC’s RECA (Real Estate China/Asia) from December 2018 to March 2019 for planning and preparing the solutions to facility management in “V-Space” covering an area of over 70,000 m2, including more than 53,000 m2 of office area.
VGC’s new facility, located near Beijing Sun Palace and reconstructed where Parkson Shopping Center was located earlier, is LEED Gold (the highest environmental standard for green buildings) certified. This new office block brings together about 2,300 employees, who previously worked at VGC’s three major offices at Sanlitun, Indigo, and 751D Park in Beijing, rendering their services for other VW brands. Facility management formerly existed in scattered leased offices, but now is integrated into a single building. Sodexo’s on-site team staffed with over 100 persons has been dedicated to offering all-around facility management services round the clock.
While undertaking such a huge-scale makeover project, VGC’s RECA and Sodexo faced a few challenges. A major challenge was that of how to put VGC’s latest office philosophies in space design into practice from the point of building facility management. Other challenges were how to meet new requirements for facility management in an office building renovated from a shopping center in just a few months? How to maintain the quality certified by LEED Gold in a long term? How to effectively carry out daily services of back-end facility management where over 2,000 employees work in a single ten-storey building? Interim management of this project officially started in December 2018, and since then Sodexo not only had to ensure daily facility management services in previously scattered company offices, but also had to offer complete support to RECA for planning and management of facility at “V-Space”, connection, test and inspection of each and every piece of facility, and preparations for entering.
Mr. Michael Brochard, Head of Facility Mgrs, RECA, VGC, said: “With Sodexo’s one-stop and all-around facility management services, RECA team could focus more on planning and execution of our operation, and less on daily facility management. At the same time, its front-end and back-end operation experts and professional teams, with their proficient skills, helped us much with cost, overall trend and service state, boosting our future business planning.”
Wang Xiaokang, Regional Director of Corporate Services, Sodexo China, said: “We participated in the entire process as a partner in planning and implementing facility management of VGC’s V-Space” project. With our strong back-end expert team (Facility Management, HSE, etc.) and efficient and professional front-end on-site service team, we helped VGC turn their office philosophies and ideas into reality. We together have a common purpose —— well-managed facility in ‘V-Space’.”
New Work Space and Reinforced Partnership
Partnership between Sodexo and VGC is over nine-years-old. VGC has moved into its new offices in 2019, and the new work space has witnessed their reinforced partnership. Facilities in V-Space are based on six people-oriented ideas where all the words start with a V, namely VITALITY (healthy), VISIONARY (digital), VILLAGE (community), VARIETY (diversified), VIBRANT (agile) and VIABLE (sustainable). Sodexo, VGC’s good partner, is the top runner in all the above-mentioned fields.
No matter in this interim management work or daily facility management services, VGC is highly impressed with Sodexo’s service spirit, team spirit and the spirit of keeping the bond strong in times to come ahead. Dr. Olaf Dettmann, Head of RECA, VGC, said: “Our relation with Sodexo is not limited to that of a client and supplier. Moreover, what’s involved here is not only a job or a contract. Sodexo is always willing to be our partner and truly helps us carry out effective operations at our work space.”
Martin Boden, Country President, Sodexo China mentioned, “It’s very encouraging to see our cooperation with VGC is being continued and expanded over around recent years. We are grateful for the trust VGC place in Sodexo and believe our cooperation will further deepen. Sodexo are proud to support the work of VGC’s RECA to improve their employees’ quality of life in China. With the continued development of our facility management capability and expertise, we hope to enable VGC’s continued success in China. ”