WeWork is planning to be a manufacturer of the actual glass and aluminium parts used in its signature interiors. WeWork, an American real estate company that provides shared workspaces for technology startups, and services for other enterprises is building a 200,000-square-foot facility located at 35 miles from its New York City headquarters.
The company is planning to hire at least 50 people to work in roles ranging from furnace operator to manufacturing director in Edison, New Jersey. The new employees will work for the manufacturing operations in the new "state-of-the-art" manufacturing facility.
The company's characteristic design aesthetics relies heavily on glass and aluminium to partition rooms.
The company, which has been facing losses, is diversifying its businesses is working on building partnerships with landlords over signing traditional long-term leases. It has also flagged helping other companies design office spaces. The company venturing into manufacturing is a part of its expansion and profit management strategies.
The company's pre-IPO filing last month flagged its drive to reduce costs by "vertical integration" - doing more in house:
"Over the past several years, we have been able to achieve efficiencies in our capital expenditures through a combination of greater economies of scale resulting from the increasing size of our global network, vertical integration of our design and construction process and increased use of technology."
A few key real estate developers have expanded to manufacturing plants in order to have a better control on their supply chain and cut costs. The practice is rare for flexible office providers like WeWork, which has taken an asset-intensive approach to its business so far.
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