Goodyear Dunlop completes relocation out of Birmingham
Tyre group Goodyear Dunlop has relocated from its traditional home in Birmingham three years after its site was controversially sold to Jaguar Land Rover to facilitate the vehicle manufacturer’s growth.
The company has moved the relatively short distance from Erdington to Birmingham Business Park, taking 26,498 sq ft of office space at 2920 Trident Court, Solihull Parkway.
The office, named GDHQ, is home to the company’s sales and marketing teams plus a research and development centre for the Dunlop Motorsport business.
Rachel Ridgill, HR director UK and Ireland, at Goodyear Dunlop, said: “Birmingham Business Park gave us the opportunity to have our own branded HQ in a self-contained building. The Park is easily accessible for our staff, with plenty of on-site parking and amenities.”
Birmingham Business Park, near junction 6 of the M42, is set in 148 acres of mature parkland. There are more than 100 buildings, with 120 occupiers employing 7,000 people. BlackRock acquired a substantial holding on the business park in 2015 and is investing more than £6m in a rolling refurbishment programme to deliver Grade A accommodation, with the assistance of asset management partner Canmoor.
Goodyear Dunlop joins a list of global brands based at the Park including EE, Metro Bank, Fujitsu and Nokia Siemens Networks, plus automotive heavyweights Rolls Royce and Changan and engineering giant IMI.
Property consultancy CBRE has advised Goodyear Dunlop on the relocation.
Will Ventham, who heads the office agency team at CBRE, said: “UK Central (formerly the M42 Economic Gateway) is the West Midlands’ principal international gateway. As a result, the area is proving to be a major draw for businesses of global standing.”
The tyre firm’s former manufacturing base in Erdington was sold to JLR in an undisclosed deal in 2014 to enable the manufacturer to expand operations at its Jaguar plant in Castle Bromwich.
The closure saw the loss of more than 240 jobs and production shipped abroad. The move prompted local politicians to criticise the tyre firm for abandoning the city. There was an effort to persuade Goodyear to build a new factory in Aston but it would not commit to the expense when it had spare capacity abroad.
Goodyear Dunlop’s administrative arm remained at the site off Fort Parkway but the offices were seriously damaged in a fire last year.
