The 1,500-acre BlueOval SK Battery Park transformed a Kentucky cornfield into a major electric-vehicle battery manufacturing complex, requiring a design-build team to manage extraordinary scale and technical complexity.
From the beginning, the project faced an aggressive speed-to-market schedule, with the first steel beam placed two weeks ahead of schedule. The $5.1 billion project was ultimately completed $1.6 billion below the initial $6.7 billion budget ceiling. The project achieved substantial completion in November 2024, more than six months before the contracted completion date of May 31, 2025.
Craft labor grew from 2,800 to 3,700 workers in a single month while the team simultaneously coordinated with the process equipment contractor, which brought an additional 2,200 personnel on site. Ultimately, the team logged 11.4 million labor hours with a rework rate of less than 0.5%.
Quarterly meetings with Ford, Barton Malow and union leadership gave the three groups a regular forum to address workforce planning and labor issues throughout construction. That collaboration helped maintain shared ownership into the project’s operating rhythm, keeping labor relations stable and workforce planning proactive as workforce demands changed.
Community Impact Prioritized
Throughout the project, BlueOval SK Battery Park made community engagement a priority, helping provide resources and opportunities to the region for decades to come. The project team engaged 750 individuals through career fairs and workforce development initiatives in partnership with the Kentucky Career Center–Lincoln Trail. More than 20% of the workforce were apprentices, creating a pipeline of skilled tradespeople in a region facing labor shortages.
The team’s commitment to the community was also reflected in its participation in local Big Brothers Big Sisters events, nearly $9,000 in food donations to Warm Blessings, a local community kitchen, and more than $60,000 worth of infrastructure upgrades to the town of Glendale.
Design-Build Team
| Client/Owner: | Ford Motor Company |
| Design-Builder: | Barton Malow |
| Architect: | Ghafari Associates |
| Engineer: | CTL Engineering |
| Specialty Contractors: | Gray Construction; Lighthouse Electrics; Shambaugh; Enerfab; Hodess |
| Project Cost: | $5,100,000,000 |
| Construction Duration: | 40 months |
Photos
Photo Credits: Reed Sampley; Barton Malow