In early 2021, Mortenson broke ground on the construction of Kohler Company's new one-million-square-foot, industry-leading manufacturing facility on the outskirts of Casa Grande, Arizona. This site, along with the surrounding roughly 1,000-acres, amasses what will be the rail-served Arizona Innovation and Technology Corridor. 

In the early stages of the corridor’s development, Kohler was preparing to expand their North America operations. In search of a partner to help vet, design, and build what will be the largest facility in their 149-year history, they selected Mortenson and Ware Malcomb Architects to achieve their vision. Kohler knew that delivering an industrial product of this size and complexity, on undeveloped desert land, required the right team with high levels of innovation, teamwork, and trust. 

To support increasing customer demand, the facility will produce the company’s high-growth STERLING Vikrell bath and shower fixtures lines – popular among large single-family homebuilders, multifamily developers, and retail big box stores. The facility will also serve as a distribution center for these products, to best serve Kohler’s growing customer base in the western U.S. with reduced lead times and delivery efficiency. 

To bring efficiencies and increase outputs, Mortenson and Barry-Wehmiller Design Group, the project’s process engineer, worked hand-in-hand with Kohler's engineering, construction, design, robotics, and automation departments to evaluate current processes and identify avenues for process evolution. To expedite a common understanding of the facility’s layout, Mortenson constructed a digital 3D model of the site using a helmet-mounted scanner. This design phase solution created a shared understanding of the design to develop consensus on the design the best possible footprint to propel Kohler into the future.

Over the course of the project, there will be over 400 on-site team members and over 40 trade partners working to deliver this world-class facility. Once complete, the facility will bring 400 new full-time jobs to the area, expanding the local economy and increasing tax revenues.