Anti-virus firm expands operations
Sophos, a world leader in corporate anti-virus protection, today
announced that it has been granted planning permission by Vale of
White Horse District Council to begin building its new corporate
headquarters. Expanding its current site in Abingdon, Oxfordshire,
the new building will house 600 employees. Construction of the new
building has now started. This news coincides with Sophos's
announcement of 54%
increase in turnover and 65% growth in profit in the last
financial year.
The project, estimated to cost £32 million, is due for
completion in January 2003. The new building, with a total area of
145,000 sq ft, is to be 3 storeys high, finished externally in
glass, steel, aluminium and brick. In addition to expanded office
space, the building will provide extensive visitor and training
facilities.
The new building, designed by Bennetts Associates, combines
environmental best practice with the requirements of a
highly-serviced, IT-intensive building. The nature of the
anti-virus industry means that the building is built to high
security specifications.
"We are particularly pleased with the enhanced facilities the
new building will provide for our staff", said Peter Lammer, joint
CEO of Sophos Anti-Virus. "Bennetts Associates brings a great deal
of expertise to this project and has shown a clear understanding of
our needs in terms of environment and security."
Other facilities will include a roof garden and south facing
staff restaurant overlooking wild landscaping and a lake.
Previous buildings designed by Bennetts Associates include
prestigious award-winning headquarters for British Telecom, John
Menzies and PowerGen.
More than 100 million users in 150 countries rely on Sophos as the best protection against complex threats and data loss. Sophos is committed to providing security and data protection solutions that are simple to manage, deploy and use and that deliver the industry's lowest total cost of ownership. Sophos offers award-winning encryption, endpoint security, web, email, and network access control solutions backed by SophosLabs - a global network of threat intelligence centers. With more than two decades of experience, Sophos is regarded as a leader in security and data protection by top analyst firms and has received many industry awards.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.