Telus 2014 Annual Report Download - page 16

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diverse computing infrastructure in Canada. In 2013, we closed two older, less efficient
data centres after migration of services to these new facilities. In 2014, we continued to
enhance the infrastructure in our Internet data centres (IDCs) in Kamloops, B.C. and
Rimouski, Quebec, enabling us to provide our customers with hosting solutions.
Partnering, acquiring and divesting to accelerate the implementation of TELUS’ strategy and
focus TELUS’ resources on core business
In 2011, we announced that we were partnering in a residential, retail and commercial real
estate redevelopment project in downtown Vancouver, TELUS Garden, which will transform
a city block that includes our current national executive offices. The project features a 46-
storey residential condominium tower and a 22-storey office tower, as well as renovations to
TELUS’ current downtown offices to provide leasable office and retail space. The
commercial and residential buildings are being built to LEED platinum and gold standards,
respectively, and incorporate green initiatives. The TELUS Garden office tower is currently
scheduled for completion in 2015. See MD&A Section 7.11 Transactions between related
parties – Transactions with real estate joint ventures for additional information.
In July 2013, we announced that we were partnering as equals, with two arm’s-length
parties (one of which is also our TELUS Garden partner), in a residential, retail and
commercial real estate redevelopment project called TELUS Sky, in Calgary, Alberta.
The 58-storey project will be constructed to LEED platinum standards and, when
completed, will be one of the most technologically innovative and environmentally
friendly buildings in North America. Demolition occurred in 2014 and excavation
commenced in early 2015; construction is currently expected to be completed in 2018.
A significant proportion of our investment will come from contributions of our existing real
estate holdings, coupled with project debt. We plan to lease office space in the new
jointly-owned mixed-use tower and vacate leased space in TELUS House Calgary upon
completion of the new development. See MD&A Section 7.11 Transactions between
related parties– Transactions with real estate joint ventures for additional information.
Since 2011, we have also acquired TELUS-branded wireless dealership businesses to
ensure we provide a focused and consistent customer experience.
In 2012, we made several small business acquisitions and related investments
complementary to our existing lines of business. These included two acquisitions that
enhanced our capabilities in respect of cloud-based EMR solutions; investments to
expand the number of international business process outsourcing call centre operations
to provide geographic and language diversity, and to obtain new business customers;
and the acquisition of additional TELUS-branded wireless dealership businesses to
ensure we provide a focused and consistent customer experience, as well as enhance
distribution of wireless and wireline products across Western Canada.
In early 2013, we acquired the security services business of Digital WYZDOM Inc. and
Digital WYZDOM Forensics Inc. (collectively, Digital WYZDOM). This acquisition
brought specialist capabilities in digital forensics, network security, e-discovery,
intellectual property and fraud advisory services to TELUS which complement our
existing security solutions portfolio. These acquisitions enable us to offer end-to-end
security and forensics services to help customers identify security risks and proactively
respond to potential threats. The digital forensics industry is growing rapidly as a result
of increased digitization of all aspects of business, government and personal records.