Regal Rexnord Moving HQ To Milwaukee

Regal Rexnord Corporation headquarters. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

A major Wisconsin manufacturer is moving its headquarters to downtown Milwaukee.

Regal Rexnord Corporation (RRX), which reported 26,000 global employees and $5.2 billion in annual revenue according to its latest annual 10-K, is moving its corporate headquarters from Beloit to the 10-story office complex at 105-111 W. Michigan St. in Westown.

“We are pleased to make this change, recognizing our increased presence in Southeastern Wisconsin. We honor our roots and appreciate the wonderful relationship we continue to maintain with the Beloit-Stateline area,” said CEO Louis Pinkham in a statement. “While we anticipate some of our leaders spending more time in Milwaukee, we are a decentralized organization, and we continue to collaborate effectively among all our RRX sites, for the benefit of all our stakeholders. Changing our headquarters address does not change that approach to collaboration.”

The building is currently home to the company’s industrial powertrain solutions business unit and RRX says it is one of its largest offices. It was briefly home to Rexnord Corp.‘s headquarters.

In 2019, Urban Milwaukee broke the news that Rexnord Corp. was moving its corporate headquarters to the building. But in early 2021, Regal Beloit Corporation announced it was merging with Rexnord’s Process and Motion Control division in a $3.7 billion deal. The company moved more than 100 employees into the building, but it wasn’t a corporate headquarters for long.

RRX announced the latest relocation news via a press release entitled “Change of Corporate Address” and said no “function and business teams in Beloit and South Beloit are being displaced as a result of this address.” It also did not announce any new jobs in Milwaukee.

The office complex, which was redeveloped by a partnership led by Klein Development, was sold in 2021 for $72.2 million to an affiliate of Atlanta-based SunTrust Equity Funding. The Klein’s partnership had paid $14.4 million for the property in 2019 according to state real estate transfer records. The property, technically two attached buildings, includes approximately 150,000 square feet of office space and a river-facing parking structure with more than 660 spaces.

Regal Rexnord operates with four business units: automation and motor control, industrial powertrain solutions, power efficiency solutions and industrial systems. The power efficiency solutions division headquarters are in Grafton. The large Falk plant, a mainstay of the Menomonee Valley, is part of Regal Rexnord.

The publicly-traded company has a market capitalization of $10.51 billion as of the time of publication.

There will be Regal Rexnord job losses in the Milwaukee area in the coming months. Earlier this week, union representatives revealed that the company would close its Village of West Milwaukee plant at 4800 W. Mitchell St. by the end of the year. Union officials said the work is being relocated to Mexico. Of its 26,000-member workforce, approximately 6,000 employees are in the United States and 10,000 are in Mexico.

Regal Rexnord is the second public company to announce a relocation to Milwaukee this year. Mayville Engineering Company announced it would move executive and administrative functions to the city in May, citing access to a skilled workforce and amenities like the airport.

Several other companies have made similar moves in recent years. Twin Disc relocated its corporate suite from Racine to the Historic Third Ward, Church Mutual Insurance Company established a lakefront office at 833 East while formally keeping its headquarters in Merrill in northern Wisconsin, Regal Ware moved its headquarters from Kewaskum to the Park Place business park and Michels Corp. built an entire mixed-use development and created a new division in the Harbor District while keeping its headquarters in Brownsville.

Rexnord’s remaining business is in water and is branded as Zurn Elkay Water Solutions. Zurn Industries was its one-time subsidiary that has its headquarters in the Reed Street Yards business park. The portion of the business that didn’t merge with Regal Beloit in 2021 merged with Elkay Manufacturing in 2022.

In a statement released after this article was first published, Mayor Cavalier Johnson praised the RRX announcement.

“I applaud Regal Rexnord’s strategic decision to formally call Milwaukee home. The relocation of its corporate headquarters to downtown Milwaukee is an additional affirmation that our city is an attractive place for businesses,” said the mayor. “I am optimistic about Regal Rexnord, and Milwaukee is very pleased to be an even larger part of the company’s future.”

Photos

UPDATE: Company annual revenue and employment figures were updated to reflect the 10-K filing versus other statements.