CHERTSEY, U.K., May 7, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- Regus plc (Nasdaq:REGS) (LSE:RGU) today announced that government agencies around the world are following their counterparts in the private sector by taking advantage of the flexibility and overall cost savings provided by office outsourcing solutions from Regus. Regus estimates that such agencies are now spending more than 12 million pounds a year worldwide with the company.
In the U.K., Regus recently signed deals with the Home Office, the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions (DTLR), the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and the British Council in London; with the Highways Agency in Reigate; with the Audit Commission in Exeter; and with the Environment Agency in Bristol.
OFT's head of facilities, Ken King commented, "The availability of high quality serviced space on flexible terms meant we could move in easily and we didn't incur any expensive start-up costs. We value our employees very highly and it was essential that we provided them with high quality workspace. It was also essential that we found accommodation which offered a high level of technical capability to provide us with a secure transfer of data between the two buildings."
The office outsourcing trend is mirrored across Europe, with the Dutch Environment Agency and the Ministry of Justice in The Hague; the Austrian Ministry for Sport and Public Affairs in Vienna; two subsidiaries of the German Employment Agency in Nuremberg; the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement in Dublin. These are complemented by numerous smaller deals with embassies, directorates of the European Commission and even police forces.
Outsourcing is also proving extremely popular in North America and across Asia, with agencies such as the Singapore Economic Development Board; Metropolitan Manila Association of Mayors and The Japanese Overseas Development Aid Agency in Vietnam recently taking space at Regus centres in the region.
"Until recently, government agencies were often forced to use existing buildings, whether they were suitable or not," commented Mark Dixon, Regus' chief executive. "This often meant that working conditions in, and the technical capability of, such buildings made for a very unproductive environment. An increasing number of government departments around the world are now realising what their private sector colleagues have known for a long while, that serviced offices are not just for overspill or project teams, but can provide real gains in cost savings, flexibility and quality of working environment."
Regus is the world's leading operator of business centres, with more than 410 centers in 240 cities and in 50 countries. Regus business centers provide businesses, both large and small, with access to fully equipped office workspaces on flexible terms. This minimises their start-up costs when relocating or entering new markets and provides a cost-effective alternative to conventional property acquisition methods.
With more than 90,000 office workspaces worldwide, Regus is also market leader in providing meeting rooms, conference and training facilities and public access videoconferencing studios.