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When Lockheed Martin Global Telecommunications considered bringing sales people to New York City, the Maryland-based defense con tractor wasn't interested in making a long-term commitment for office space.

With less than 10 people making the move and uncertainty over the duration of their stay, the company was loath to sign a lease with a five- or 10-year term -- the usual length of time required to secure a prestigious Manhattan address. Instead the company decided to lease space with Regus Business Centres at 245 Park Ave., where companies can secure space for a much shorter duration. Like other firms doing business with Regus, Lockheed Martin is charged a flat fee per day, per workstation.

"This really is a turn-key solution," said Christopher Ford, region sales director for Lockheed Martin. "This is a stop-gap measure until we decide whether we want to have permanent space in New York City."

The growing number of companies looking for "instant office space" has spurred increased demand for services provided by companies like Regus, HQ Global Workplaces and the Alliance Business Centers Network. They provide companies with fully furnished offices equipped with T-1 lines, videoconferencing capabilities and other technology required by businesses to function in the modern workplace. Conference and meeting rooms are also available.

"One of the driving factors behind growth in the industry is technology," said David Rupert, HQ's president and chief operating officer. "It allows companies to be operating in a new location in a very short time."

Space can be leased on an hourly, daily or monthly basis. Regus coach of the Americas Robert Gaudreau said the average fee charged nationwide for its service is $30 per day, per workstation. Companies sign a one-page document -- similar to a car-rental agreement to secure the space. Firms are offered a range of "a la carte" services such as faxing, photocopying and teleconferencing and are charged on a "pay as you go" basis.

"This might be a little more ex pensive," Ford admitted. "But it's worth it."

This type of space used to be called an "executive suite" but, in recent years, it is more likely to be called an "office business center."

Some argue the changes have been so great, in fact, that the inception of the office business center has brought with it a brand-new "officing solutions" industry. The difference between the two industries some experts contend, is that the older, executive suites industry was comprised of smaller operations, usually within a confined geographic area. The newer, officing solutions industry tends to serve larger clients in multiple geographic areas.

Whether it's a new industry or an offshoot of an existing one, growth has been strong over the past few years.

According to the Executive Suite As sociation, a trade organization for owners and operators of office business centers based in Columbus, Ohio, executive suites or office business centers arose in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The industry expanded in the early 80s and reached a plateau in the late 1980s and early 1990s during the recession. A typical office business center consists of one or two floors in a building ranging in size from 10,000 to 75,000 SF, according to the association, which is in the process of changing its name to the Office Business Center Association.

During the late 1990s, with the advent of Internet companies and increased globalization, the industry surged. Today, there are an estimated 4,000 centers in the United States and 5,000 worldwide. The association estimates that demand for the centers will grow to as many as 10,000 over the next five years. The organization, which has over 1,000 members in 48 countries, has seen its membership increase 15 percent over the past year, said executive director Jeannine Windbigler.

"There's been growth not only in the number of locations, but in the type of companies that use our service," Rupert said.

In New York City, Regus has space on the 24th and 39th floors of 245 Park Ave. but is planning to open another location on the 93rd floor at the World Trade Center. Alliance Business Centers Network comprised of smaller, locally owned office business centers -- has locations at 521 Fifth Ave., 575 Madison Ave., 2 Penn Plaza and 44 Wall St.

HQ Global Workplaces has space at 90, 100, 230, 237, 300 and 445 Park Ave.; 1120, 1230 and 1285 Avenue of the Americas; 26, 140, 233 and 1633 Broadway; 380, 405 and 599 Lexington Ave.; 666 and 730 Fifth Ave.; 885 Third Ave.; 590 Madison Ave.; 250 W. 34th; 11 Penn Plaza; 80 Broad St.; One Liberty Plaza and 14 Wall St.

Among local players in the office business center industry include Prime Office Centers at 44 Wall St., 2 Penn Plaza and 521 Fifth Ave., and Manhattan Business Centers, Inc. at 410 Park Ave.

Experts said there are several reasons for the growth, including the explosion of new dot-coms that need the flexibility an office business center provides.

"Last year, we had a phenomenal year. Most of the growth was from technology companies," said Brendan McShane, national sales manager for Alliance Business Centers Network.

The dot-com explosion has spawned local initiatives that operate is a similar fashion as national companies like Regus and HQ. SL Green Realty Corp.'s eMerge, Inc. has 22,500 SF of space at 440 Ninth Ave. on the southeast corner of West 35th Street. Despite the dot-com fallout, the company is planning to expand the operation to another 25,000 SF of space. Company officials said, despite the dot-com fallout, they have managed to keep some Internet tenants but have also increased its customer base to include big corporations and out-of-town firms.

Though dot-coms may have cast a fresh light on the industry, there are other economic trends that are driving the industry growth, such as the globalization of business.

"With the advent of all the free trade agreements, companies need to operate in many locations," Gaudreau said.

FDC Securities is based in Miami, but has satellite operations in Santiago, Chile and Sao Paulo, Brazil. When the company wanted to open an office in New York, it looked for an office business center provider that could accommodate its global space needs.

"(Regus) is in most places we want to be," said Guillermo Clamens, managing director of FDC Securities. "The space is flexible and the prices are competitive."

The company has had two workers at 245 Park Ave. for the past six months and was attracted to the "plug and play" features of an office business center, whereby can companies can plug in computers and start conducting business within hours or days.

"With traditional leases, you can wait two months from the time you sign the lease until the time you're all set up in the office," Clamens said. "In my business, two months is a lot of business."

To accommodate corporate road warriors" HQ, along with airport operator BAA plc recently opened the UK's first stand-alone airport conference and business center at London Gatwick Airport. The 8,000 SF facility will offer businesses and travelers a fully serviced environment for meetings including 18 conference rooms and touchdown area for use between meetings or flights. HQ and BAA are considering similar centers in international airport hubs throughout the BAA network, including Heathrow in 2002.

"This venture underscores our commitment to providing global office solutions that allow our customers to work how, when and where they want," said HQ's chief executive officer Gary Kusin.

Another factor driving the industry growth is the desire of many companies to get out of real estate business -- sometimes referred to as "office outsourcing."

"Outsourcing is an alternative that has been widely used in many areas of corporate life, including travel, food and beverage, accounting and payroll services, short-term staffing and more," wrote Kusin, in an article about office business centers. "Outsourcing allows a company to focus on its core business and to rely on outside organizations to handle non-core functions. Only recently has this concept been available to service corporate real estate needs."

By leasing space at an office business center, companies can wipe real estate costs off the balance sheet by turning capital costs into operating expenses. They also offer companies "just-in-time" office space, which means they aren't paying for office space they don't need, officials said.

Officials from Fantastic Corp., a technology company based in Switzerland, said using HQ allowed the company to expand U.S. markets without committing to large office spaces, said Peter Barris, Fantastic's vice president and GM of the Americas.

"With traditional space, if one area experiences greater growth than anticipated, our offices were bursting at the seams or if there was less demand in another, we were paying for office space we did not need," Barris said. "With HQ, we can reduce or add space as needed, which is more cost-effective."

Office business centers also help companies accommodate the changing demands of today's workforce. Intel is based in Santa Clara, Calif., but decided to open a branch office at a Regus location in the East Bay to shorten the commute for workers who live in the area, Gaudreau said.

"Companies use us to bring work to the workers," Gaudreau said. "It's helps them keep the best talent."

With technology and globalization increasing, experts predict that the industry will continue to grow.

"We're in the right place at the right time," Gaudreau said. "Companies need the speed and they need to get real estate off balance sheets."

Rupert said office business centers represent about two percent of total commercial office space in the U.S., but predicted that number would grow.

"Our forecast is that demand will continue to grow," Rupert said. "In the major metropolitan markets, (office business centers) will be strong product."