Kennecott to room with Rio Tinto in green HQ
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Copper giant's S. Jordan digs LEED-certified
The Salt Lake Tribune
Kennecott Utah Copper soon will be leaving its Magna headquarters for new environmentally friendly, energy-efficient digs in South Jordan's Daybreak development.
Along with its copper mining company's headquarters, Kennecott parent company Rio Tinto also will be consolidating several of its offices located throughout the Salt Lake Valley at the new location.
"This move is all about us operating more efficiently," said Andrew Harding, Kennecott Utah Copper's chief executive officer. "As it is, we spend a lot of time commuting between offices. By bringing people together, there is more opportunity for everyone to work more efficiently."
In all, about 570 people from Rio Tinto, Kennecott Utah Copper and Kennecott Land will move to the new facility in the Daybreak master-planned community at the foot of the Oquirrh Mountains.
The amalgamation of the various offices of Kennecott and Rio Tinto - along with the Magna headquarters there are employees working in Copperton and near Salt Lake City International Airport - is expected to be completed by the end of October.
Laura Jo McDermaid, a member of the Magna Community Council, said businesses in the area that serve the approximately 300 employees working at Kennecott's headquarters will definitely feel the impact of the move.
"We certainly hate to see them go. Kennecott's headquarters has been here for a long time. They have been very good neighbors."
Harding said Kennecott "will continue to support [the Magna community] any way we can."
Kennecott headquarters has been in the Arbor Park development near 8400 West and 3500 South in Magna for about a decade, Harding said. "Prior to that our headquarters was in downtown Salt Lake City."
Harding pointed out that Kennecott's new headquarters will be in a LEED-certified building.
LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. It is a program of the U.S. Green Building Council that provides an independent third-party verification that a building has been constructed in an environmentally responsible fashion, and is a healthy place to work.
Kennecott, along with other affiliated companies such as Kennecott Land, will become part of a new Rio Tinto Regional Center. That center will take up about 137,000 square feet in the 175,000-square-foot Daybreak Corporate Center.
"Our goal in constructing that building was to do it in a sustainable manner so we could have a positive impact on the people who will work there," said Scott Schwindeman, of Kennecott Land, the developer of the Daybreak community, a housing, retail and commercial enterprise.
He said all the electricity purchased for use in the building will be generated from renewable sources such as solar and wind. The building also has its own solar panels on the roof and water-efficient landscaping.
Kennecott, which is owned by Rio Tinto, is consolidating its offices in a new Rio Tinto Regional Center in South Jordan. (Francisco Kjolseth/The Salt Lake Tribune )
Kennecott is consolidating all of its offices in a facility in Daybreak that is LEED-certified, constructed with high-performance energy and design. These office suites use plenty of natural light. (Francisco Kjolseth/The Salt Lake Tribune)
The Daybreak development can be seen beyond the building's solar panels. (Francisco Kjolseth/The Salt Lake Tribune)
In all, about 570 people from Rio Tinto, Kennecott Utah Copper and Kennecott Land will move to the new facility in the Daybreak master-planned community at the foot of the Oquirrh Mountains.
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