SPRINGDALE, Ark., April 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- A new office tower
has been added to previously announced plans for the "Discovery Center" at
Tyson Foods World Headquarters in Springdale, the company announced today.
Work is underway on a new four-story office building with space for more
than 500 Team Members. The building will cover 174,000 square feet and
connect to the company's existing office complex.
The new office is an addition to Tyson's Discovery Center, which will be a
research, development and training complex. As a result of the addition,
along with other planned changes, the overall project will now include
approximately 285,000 square feet of building space at an estimated cost of
$85 to $95 million, compared to the 184,000 square feet and $40 to $50 million
originally proposed. The overall cost of this project will be included in the
company's capital expenditures over the next several years and will not change
the company's fiscal 2005 capital expenditure guidance of $600 to
$650 million.
"Our company's long-range plan calls for the development of additional
office space to bring more of our corporate staff to World Headquarters and
provide room for future growth," John Tyson, chairman and CEO of Tyson Foods,
said. "After analyzing the projected cost of the Discovery Center, we
determined it makes economic sense to build the additional office space now,
rather than later."
The new office tower will provide additional space for current Team
Members at World Headquarters, allow for the consolidation of selected outside
office locations in both northwest Arkansas and around the country, and make
room for future team members as the company continues to grow.
The Discovery Center training facilities will be on the first floor of the
new office building. A variety of leadership, management and job-functional
training classes will be offered there.
The Discovery Center complex will also include a separate 63,000 square
foot building, which will be constructed to house 18 test kitchens, including
a retail presentation kitchen, foodservice presentation kitchen and a "kitchen
of the future." The building will also have office space for 125 people.
In addition, a USDA-inspected pilot plant covering 48,000 square feet will
be built to provide a manufacturing environment for product development and
new concepts to improve "speed to market." It will also include a test
kitchen, as well as facilities for packaging design and shelf-life studies.
"We remain very excited about the Discovery Center, because it will help
us move toward our goal of expanding the production of value-added products
demanded by today's consumers," Tyson said. "The training space will also
boost efforts to develop the talent we need to capitalize on the opportunities
ahead of us."
To make room for the additional staff that will be based at the World
Headquarters, plans have also been added to develop 650 parking spaces north
and southeast of the corporate complex.
Preliminary work on the overall project, including site work and
excavation, is already underway. The four-story office building is scheduled
to be completed by late summer or early fall of 2006, while the rest of the
project should be done by early 2007.
General Contractor for the project is Crossland Construction Company, Inc.
of Columbus, Kansas.
Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE: TSN), founded in 1935 with headquarters in
Springdale, Arkansas, is the world's largest processor and marketer of
chicken, beef, and pork and the second-largest food company in the Fortune
500. The company produces a wide variety of protein-based and prepared food
products, which are marketed under the "Powered by Tyson(TM)" strategy. Tyson
is the recognized market leader in the retail and foodservice markets it
serves, providing products and service to customers throughout the United
States and more than 80 countries. Tyson has approximately 114,000 Team
Members employed at more than 300 facilities and offices in the United States
and around the world.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements contained in this communication are "forward-looking
statements" such as statements relating to expected capital expenditures for
fiscal 2005. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks,
uncertainties and other factors, which could cause actual results to differ
materially from historical experience or from future results expressed or
implied by such forward-looking statements. Among the factors that may cause
actual results and experiences to differ from the anticipated results and
expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are the following:
(i) fluctuations in the cost and availability of raw materials, such as live
cattle, live swine or feed grains; (ii) market conditions for finished
products, including the supply and pricing of alternative proteins, and the
demand for alternative proteins; (iii) risks associated with effectively
evaluating derivatives and hedging activities; (iv) access to foreign markets
together with foreign economic conditions, including currency fluctuations and
import/export restrictions; (v) outbreak of a livestock disease which could
have an effect on livestock owned by the Company, the availability of
livestock for purchase by the Company, or the Company's ability to access
certain markets; (vi) successful rationalization of existing facilities, and
the operating efficiencies of the facilities; (vii) changes in the
availability and relative costs of labor and contract growers; (viii) issues
related to food safety, including costs resulting from product recalls,
regulatory compliance and any related claims or litigation; (ix) adverse
results from litigation; (x) risks associated with leverage, including cost
increases due to rising interest rates or changes in debt ratings or outlook;
(xi) changes in regulations and laws (both domestic and foreign), including
changes in accounting standards, environmental laws and occupational, health
and safety laws; (xii) the ability of the Company to make effective
acquisitions, and successfully integrate newly acquired businesses into
existing operations; (xiii) effectiveness of advertising and marketing
programs; and (xiv) the effect of, or changes in, general economic conditions.
SOURCE Tyson Foods, Inc.
 back to top
Related links:
http://www.tyson.com
CONTACT:
media, Gary Mickelson, +1-479-290-6111, or
investors, Louis Gottsponer, +1-479-290-4826, both of Tyson
Foods, Inc.
|
