Commercial property tenants are fighting shy of the slow delivery of new buildings ­ and of developers¹ current insistence on long leases ­ and turning instead to existing buildings that can be upgraded and leased for shorter periods.

One such is freight handling and distribution giant MSAS Global Logistics, which is to move its South African headquarters to a revamped office and warehouse complex in Isando later this year.

ASA Interiors, a company in the ASA construction management group, has been awarded the R1-million refurbishment contract, which will see the former PG Autoglass buildings in Andre Greyvenstein Road transformed into a secure, modern facility with some 1600sqm of office space and 6 600sqm of warehousing.

The primary reason for the move, says MSAS Global Logistics MD Ian Logie, is to enable the company to further develop its logistics services to both local and international clients. Location and size were thus important factors in the choice of building for its new headquarters.

"However, the really critical issues in the choice of an existing building rather than a new one were those of availability and flexibility. The market for our services is changing and growing so fast that we could not afford the lengthy wait for a new building. We also did not want to get locked into the 10 or 12-year lease, with set annual rental escalations, that is now the norm for new developments."

"The revamp of the PG complex will take just three months, and the fact that we were able to negotiate a much more favourable lease term was what really decided us."

Cost was, of course, also a consideration, and although this solution may not deliver major savings for MSAS, Logie is content that the company will be getting good value - especially since the new facility has high visibility and will now be customised to suit the company¹s purposes.

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