The LEGO Group is building a manufacturing facility in Chesterfield County, Virginia, designed to reduce carbon emissions across construction and operations, with the office building set to use engineered mass timber instead of conventional materials.
The project includes a 1.7 million sq ft production site and forms part of an investment of more than $1 billion. The facility is scheduled to open in 2027 and will create more than 1,700 jobs. It will include production, processing, packing and warehouse operations across multiple buildings.
The office building will be constructed from engineered mass timber, using compressed layers of wood designed to meet structural strength requirements typically associated with steel and concrete. The project is being designed by LS3P, while Gray|Hourigan serves as general contractor. Early calculations show the material can reduce embedded carbon in the structure by up to 40% compared with conventional construction materials.
The wood used for the mass timber structure will come from regions near Virginia and will include species native to the area, according to Virginia Economic Development Partnership.
Construction across the site will also incorporate materials such as concrete, steel and glass with a focus on reducing carbon footprint through recycled content where possible. The broader facility will include energy efficiency measures such as insulation, automated monitoring systems and sensors that adjust lighting, heating and cooling based on occupancy.
The site will operate using renewable energy from an on-site solar installation with up to 60 thousand panels and a capacity of 30 to 35 megawatts. The facility is designed to meet at least LEED Gold certification, with a target of LEED Platinum.
