Airports
Boeing Breaks Ground on $1B South Carolina 787 Dreamliner Project
A BE&K Building Group/HITT Contracting joint venture will lead construction
The $1-billion project's centerpiece is a new approximately 1.2-million-sq-ft final assembly building that will include positions for airplane production, production support and office space.
Boeing South Carolina (BSC) has started a multi-faceted expansion at its two campuses near Charleston International Airport. Last year, the company announced an investment of more than $1 billion to support increased production of the 787 Dreamliner widebody aircraft through new infrastructure and facilities.
Scheduled to begin later this year, the construction program is led by the joint venture of BE&K Building Group and HITT Contracting, with BRPH as architect of record. The project's centerpiece is a new approximately 1.2-million-sq-ft final assembly building that will include positions for airplane production, production support and office space. Other project elements include facilities for parts preparation and vertical-fin painting, as well as flight-line stalls. Additions will also be made at BSC's Interiors Responsibility Center, where many 787 interior components are made. Construction will require up to 2,500 workers—together totaling an estimated 6.2 million worker hours—with completion expected in early 2027.
South Carolina has been home to the full 787 Dreamliner production cycle for more than a decade, with Boeing manufacturing the 787-8, 787-9 and 787-10 models for delivery to customers around the world. By the end of 2026, BSC's facilities will produce up to 10 aircraft per month, helping meet what the company predicts will be a global demand for more than 7,800 new wide-body airplanes over the next two decades. Boeing says its 787 backlog stands at nearly 1,000 airplanes, including more than 300 orders added this year.
"We continue to see strong demand for the 787 Dreamliner family," Stephanie Pope, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, said in a statement. "We are making this significant investment today to ensure Boeing is ready to meet our customers' needs in the years and decades ahead."
