Motorola Solutions sees Schaumburg as growing hub

Motorola Solutions inc. CEO Greg Brown said Thursday he’s forming a new global services organization, aiming to further grow the company and continuing to staff the 400-or-so employee workforce that will be based in Chicago.

The company, which split from the mother ship in January, reported a profitable second quarter on Thursday, giving Wall Street something to cheer about in the midst of massive debt talks at the federal level.

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“we expect to continue operating here and focus all critical areas into this headquarters,” Brown said. “It’s the nerve center.”

MSI aims to use about $1 billion for research-and-development to help the company grow further. It’s especially going to push public safety broadband, with most of that work being done in Schaumburg.

In addition, MSI plans to restructure call center, repair centers and other areas into a global services organization that will be centered in Schaumburg. The restructuring basically involves having leaders in various divisions report directly to the Schaumburg center and not to local bosses in cities around the United States and in other countries. that organization should be completed later this year, Brown said.

“We’re looking to get everyone under one roof,” Brown said.

Brown said the company also is continuing to work on creating a stronger center with 400 workers in Chicago, which was recently announced. that workforce will include some workers who will move from other locations as well as some new hires, he said.

And as a side note, Brown said MSI is still looking to lease two major buildings on its Schaumburg campus. in February, the company decided to put up for lease the so-called Parts Building, used primarily as a warehouse with about 260,000 square feet, and the IT Building, which has specialized devices and equipment in about 170,000 square feet. The income from the leases could help Motorola Solutions cover the costs of maintaining and operating the buildings.

Still, while the company expects to grow the business, it aims to keep its overall global workforce constant. Its base here is expected to take a leading role.

“we still expect to continue to operate all critical areas out of this campus,” Brown said.

Surfing: Naperville-based OfficeMax said this week it will add Nook The Simple Reader, and Nook Color Reader’s Tablet to its offerings.

•Chicago-based United Airlines and Continental Airlines, which have some operations left in Elk Grove Township, has introduced an app for iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch that allows customers to book reservations, check in, access mobile boarding passes and get flight information. It’s available at the iTunes Store and you can follow the app on Twitter.

•LightSquared and Sprint Nextel Thursday said they have signed a 15-year agreement that includes spectrum hosting and network services, 4G wholesale and 3G roaming. with this agreement, plus the launch and operation of its next-generation satellite, there’s a signed agreement with Nokia Siemens Networks for its independent Core Network, which signal that LightSquared has all of the components in place to operate an integrated 4G-LTE wireless broadband and satellite network, the companies said. Nokia Siemens has operations in Arlington Heights.

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