New 188,000-square-foot building will house 1,000 employees

The future of advanced technology solutions for the connected car, automotive audio and cloud services is on display inside the anchor tenant of the 400-acre Haggerty Corridor Corporate Park.

HARMAN International Industries, one of the premiere connected technologies companies for automotive, consumer and enterprise markets, unveiled its new North American Headquarters in January, giving visitors a glimpse into the cutting-edge

The grand opening ceremony included several local, state and federal leaders, from Novi Mayor Bob Gatt, State Rep. Kathy Crawford and her husband Oakland County Commissioner Hugh Crawford to Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, Congressman Dave Trott and Ford Motor Co. CEO Mark Fields. 

The 1,000 employees at the North American headquarters will be focused on engineering and development, and do so inside a state-of-the-art facility. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and connected car systems.

HARMAN's North American Automotive Headquarters includes:

• Engineering labs for advanced Connected Car technologies and platforms
• Development areas focused on future connectivity solutions
• Infotainment design studios for HARMAN and customer co-developed advanced software applications
• State-of-the-art audio listening room
• A full cinema quality 5.1 surround sound theater
• An anechoic chamber for accurate designing and testing of speakers
• Vehicle bays for integration testing
• A full-scale pilot factory
• Employee amenities including a fitness center, locker rooms, cafeteria collaborative spaces and an outdoor deck and patio space

State-of-the-art kitchen helps expand food opportunities

It's a kitchen that would make Gordon Ramsey blush and it's right here in Novi.

National Food Group, a wholesale food service distributor for education, institutions, entertainment venues, healthcare facilities and corporate cafes, recently unveiled its new state-of-the-art Innovation Center at its national headquarters. 

The commercial kitchen is designed to provide customers, partners and employees an inviting atmosphere to learn about food and food preparation techniques.

The business has housed its national headquarters in Novi since 1990, and continues to grow, adding 25 employees last year with more expected in 2016. It offers three unique programs: Opportunity Buys, Always Available and Commodity Processing, which all arose from a commitment to improve nutritional quality in food service through high value products.

The new kitchen is outfitted with the same industry standard equipment found in professional food service kitchens, and is in a modern bistro-style space with metal, barn wood and granite finishing. It also features commercial video and teleconferencing equipment to live stream or record meetings and demonstrations.

To learn more about the business and the Innovation Center, visit NationalFoodGroup.com.