Tech company leaving Novi, bringing headquarters to Detroit

Tata Technologies, a growing global engineering and consulting firm, announced Friday it is moving its North American headquarters — and 150 jobs — from Novi to a formerly empty Albert Kahn-designed building in Detroit's TechTown.

The move, company CEO Warren Harris said Friday, will bring Tata Technologies, which specializes in automotive, aerospace and industrial heavy machinery verticals, closer to leading automotive, mobility and tech companies — and closer to talent.

Being part of Detroit’s business environment will also accelerate the company's growth strategy and allow it to reinvest in the city with new jobs, Harris said.

The company has more than 8,500 associates representing 27 nationalities globally.

Also read:

It delivers customized solutions for engineering and design, product lifecycle management and enterprise IT system integration for the manufacturing sector.

Harris and Sonal Ramrakhiani, Tata Technologies' chief operating officer of the Americas, made the announcement Friday at the soon-to-be headquarters at 6001 Cass Ave.

The company will likely move into the 130,000-square-foot building — built in 1927 as the Cadillac LaSalle Sales and Service Building — in 2019, after renovations headed by Detroit real estate development firm The Platform are complete.

The space also will house a 6,000-square-foot gallery for Wayne State University’s art collection, according to a news release announcing Tata Technologies' move.

More: Chase to give $2.5M to Detroit groups who work with small businesses

More: Beacon Project to lure Fisher Building visitors with art in arcade

The building rehabilitation is part of The Platform's larger vision for TechTown, which also includes the 54-unit condominium development Cass & York; an apartment building on Antoinette Street and a 550-space parking garage, according to the news release.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, Detroit Economic Growth Corp. Executive Vice President Peter Chapman, Platform Executive Chairman Peter Cummings and Platform President and CEO Dietrich Knoer all were to join Harris and Ramrakhiani on Friday in making the announcement.

“We are thrilled that Tata Technologies has chosen Detroit as the site of its North American headquarters,” Duggan said. “Tata Technologies joins a growing number of global companies in choosing Detroit as a base. This move helps to strengthen Detroit's position as a leader in automotive technology and mobility."

Knoer of The Platform also welcomed the move.

Also read:

“We have long thought that Detroit’s TechTown and Milwaukee Junction areas should be a hub for today’s mobility economy,” Knoer said. “Tata Technologies’ decision to move into 6001 Cass is an important step in the execution of that vision."

The DEGC facilitated the company's move to Detroit, first connecting with Tata Technologies representatives at a Site Selector Forum held by the Business Development team last year, Tata said in the news release. The DEGC's Chapman and his team worked to identify real-estate options and sell the company on what Detroit has to offer.

Tata Technologies was founded in 1989 and opened its North American headquarters in Novi in the mid-1990s. The company is part of the Tata Group, an Indian conglomerate founded by Jamsetji Tata in 1868, which also includes Tata Motors.

“For 150 years, the Tata Group has placed community at the core of its purpose," Ramrakhiani said in the news release. "In keeping with that ethos ... we look forward to contributing to the ‘resurgence of Detroit’ by creating STEM job opportunities.”

Tata Technologies serves clients in 25 countries with delivery centers in Detroit; Pune-Hinjawadi, India; Bangalore, India; Coventry, England; Stuttgart, Germany, and Bangkok, Thailand. The international headquarters is located in Singapore.

Contact Cindy Burton: cburton@freepress.com or 313-222-6491. Follow Cindy on Twitter @cindylburton