Projo Biz Blog

SOUTH KINGSTOWN –– After looking into other possible locations for the company’s headquarters, American Power Conversion has decided there’s no place like home.

Laurent Vernerey, APC’s president and chief executive officer, announced today that the $3.5 billion company will keep its corporate headquarters at its present location on Fairgrounds Road.

APC makes equipment for large corporations and for consumers that make sure computers stay running when the power goes out. The company also makes cooling equipment used to keep computer servers from overheating.

He said that after Schneider Electric purchased APC last year, the company began to investigate whether or not it made sense to move to another location, he said.

One of the reasons APC considered moving was the fact that the Fairgrounds Road facility was built mainly as a manufacturing plant. Since then, the company has moved almost all of its manufacturing elsewhere, leaving it with a large warehouse-like space.

Instead of moving, Vernerey said the company will convert the manufacturing space into something more suitable.

“After looking at all of our alternatives, we have decided to make a $3 million to $4 million investment in this facility, here, to make it a greater place to work,” Vernerey said at APC’s headquarters yesterday.

Besides redesigning the buildings interior, Vernerey said that some of the investment will go towards making the building more energy efficient.

The improvements will be made over the next six to eight months, he said.

There are 1,100 employees at the facility. Most work in corporate support positions, software engineering, research and development, and sales and marketing, Vernerey said.

“Our employees have been waiting for this decision of mine for a while,” he said. “I think for the state of Rhode Island, it’s important you know we will continue to invest.”

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