The Lego Group selected Gray|Hourigan, a joint venture of Gray Inc. and Richmond, Va.-based Hourigan as general contractor for its $1 million toy manufacturing plant project in Virginia.
Plans call for 13 buildings totaling 1.7 million square feet on a 340-acre site in Chesterfield County, Va., outside of Richmond. Lego said in a statement that it began site preparation work last year and has been refining the design with architect LS3P Associates Ltd. Construction of the plant buildings is scheduled to begin later this year, and production at the facility is scheduled to begin in 2027.
Lego aims to make the facility’s operations carbon neutral. The scope of the project includes a ground and roof solar plant with a power between 20 and 25 MW. Lego said it plans to seek WELL and LEED Platinum certification for an office/administration building and LEED Gold for the rest of the facility, in addition to LEED Zero Energy and Water once it’s operational. Even the location was selected to be close to major markets and shorten supply chains, according to the company.
In a statement, Lego highlighted the contractors’ expertise in manufacturing construction and green building certification. Gray, based in Lexington, Ky., is the third-largest contractor in the industrial sector on ENR’s 2023 Top 400 Contractors list and No. 37 overall. Hourigan ranks No. 326. Stephen Gray, president and CEO of Gray, said in a statement that the contractors are committed to “maintaining the highest standards in environmental sustainability, diversity/equity and community engagement.”
Lego headquarters in the United States
As Lego moves forward with construction of the manufacturing plant in Virginia, it is also preparing to move its U.S. headquarters from Connecticut to Massachusetts.
The company announced last August that it had selected 100,000 square feet on five floors of a new office building in Boston as the future home of its American business.
The office tower at 1001 Boylston St. is part of the $700 million dual high-rise development called Parcel 12, which sits next to and above the Massachusetts Turnpike, as previously reported by ENR. Contractor Suffolk Construction built the tower for property developer Samuels & Assoc. Work on a plaza and retail space at the site is expected to continue through the spring.
Lego says it plans to move the office in 2026.
