Tokyo-based conglomerate Fujifilm has signed for a 10-year lease at the Whitbread family’s 30,000 sq ft office development at Cardington Road in Bedford, which developer Graftongate is set to deliver in summer 2022.
Plans for Fujifilm’s new UK headquarters, funded by the family’s Southill Estate, were approved by Bedford Borough Council in April this year.
The site is adjacent to St Martins Way, where company operations have been located since 1983. The three-storey building will provide office and dedicated workshop space as well as exhibition areas. Construction will commence in August this year.
The new building – to be named Fujifilm House – will use low-energy and green technologies. It will be built to BREEAM “excellent” specifications and incorporate a photovoltaic array, sustainable urban drainage and biodiverse landscaping design, working in partnership with the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire.
The building’s exterior aims to integrate design elements in line with the company’s Japanese roots, such as shoji screens and louvres, as well as Bedford’s history of lacemaking, with intricate patterns incorporated into the external cladding design.
Since first moving its UK logistics operations to Bedford almost 40 years ago, Fujifilm has diversified its products and services beyond photography, particularly in healthcare. During the pandemic it has manufactured Covid-19 vaccines and supplied therapies and key front-line and community diagnostic products.
Yoshitaka Nakamura, managing director of Fujifilm UK, said: “Our new headquarters will help to provide a fit-for-purpose site for the future of Fujifilm in the UK and our ongoing efforts to provide top-quality products and services which contribute to the advancement of culture, science, technology and industry, as well as improved health and environmental protection in society.”
Colin Beasley, principal at Graftongate, added: “Fujifilm House will unify the company’s 38-year presence in Bedford and its impressive sustainability credentials will contribute to the long-standing investment value, creating a net benefit to the wider economic and environmental community.”
Christopher Waud acted for Fujifilm and Savills acted for Graftongate on leasing and planning.
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