Graco - French Lake Industrial Center Master Plan and Building 1

Kickstarting a New Manufacturing Campus

After purchasing a large site in Dayton, MN, Graco hired HGA to develop a master plan that accommodated multiple buildings and business functions. Following the completion of the master plan HGA was asked to continue on and design the first building on this new campus – a $85 million new ground-up manufacturing building containing approximately 90,000 SF of office, 30,000 SF of lab, and 400,000 SF of manufacturing/warehouse.

The building features a 1.4-megawatt solar array on the roof (over 3,100 solar panels) that is expected to offset over 23,000 tons on CO2 over the next 30 years. Graco’s manufacturing space was designed for optimal flexibility and allows them to reconfigure production lines as new products/ processes are developed. The office space includes engineering spaces and demonstration labs–this allows Graco to showcase their products to clients and provide training, both internally and externally. With expansive views toward French Lake, the building takes advantage of the unique site in Dayton and includes an exterior terrace, informal community spaces, and large cafeteria that provide multiple opportunities for staff to connect and step away from the manufacturing environment.

As manufacturing leader in a broad range of fluid handling applications, Graco employs approximately 3,500 people worldwide and has their headquarters located in Minneapolis, Minnesota.