Forum Energy Tech to Occupy 68% of New Duke Realty Building

February 10, 2013

Duke Realty Corporation’s Houston office found a tenant for Sam Houston Crossing Two, its new, speculative suburban office building. Forum Energy Technologies, Inc.—a provider of manufactured technologies and applied products for the energy industry—signed a 108,639-square-foot lease and will be occupying the second and third floors of the building.

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

Duke Realty Corp.’s Houston office found a tenant for Sam Houston Crossing Two, the firm’s new, speculative suburban office building fronting the Sam Houston Tollway.

Forum Energy Technologies Inc.—a provider of manufactured technologies and applied products for the energy industry—signed a 108,639-square-foot lease and will be occupying the second and third floors of the building. The 108,639-square-foot lease amounts to 68 percent of the building.

Located between Highway 290 and Highway 249 on the Sam Houston Tollway, midway between the I-10 Energy Corridor and the new Exxon Mobil campus, Sam Houston Crossing Two has been targeting energy services firms that want to be close to industry clients, with Duke Realty’s efforts in this respect being deemed successful.

“This building will consolidate Drilling and Subsea personnel from four buildings, giving them an opportunity to work more closely together as a team, and supports our continued growth,” said Tom Simms, treasurer with Forum. “The Duke building appealed to us due to its location, easy access on the Sam Houston Tollway, visibility and attractive design.”

The 159,056-square-foot tilt-wall concrete-and-glass facility features large floor plates for flexibility in space planning and includes Class A finishes and fixtures. Forum will be moving in starting in July 2013.

Steve Hesse and Jeff Cairns with CBRE represented Forum in the transaction, while Cory Driskill, senior leasing representative, represented Duke Realty.

Another speculative development will soon claim ground at the southwest corner of the Sam Houston Beltway 8 Tollway and Highway 225. California-based The Carson Cos. recently broke ground on Carson Commerce Center, a three-building, 365,000-square-foot industrial project. With completion set for the end of the year, The Carson Co. chose Cadence McShane to be the general contractor for the project, while Powers Brown Architecture was named architect.