Boeing’s $1B Expansion Will Double 787 Rate

Boeing has started a more than $1-billion expansion of its assembly complex in North Charleston, S.C., as it aims to increase the production rate for its 787 Dreamliner program to 10 aircraft/month. Lately, Boeing has been producing 787s at a up seven jets/month, though its current target is four to five jets/month.

The plant adjacent to Charleston International Airport opened in 2009, and Boeing has more than 7,800 employees working there and at a satellite location in Orangeburg, S.C. It has projected another 1,000 workers will be employed at the expanded plant.

Boeing made the decision to center 787 production in South Carolina in late 2020, with the last Dreamliner produced in Everett, Wash., in February 2021

"We continue to see strong demand for the 787 Dreamliner family and its market-leading efficiency and versatility,” stated Boeing Commercial Airplanes president and CEO at a groundbreaking ceremony. “We are making this significant investment today to ensure Boeing is ready to meet our customer's needs in the years and decades ahead.”

The expansion project announced last year involves constructing a new, 1.2-million sq.ft final assembly building comparable in size to the existing assembly operation, which will include airplane production positions, production support areas, and office space.

Other aspects of the overall program include a part preparation areas, a vertical fin paint centers, flight line stalls, and more.

Boeing also will expand the aircraft interior fitting center, which includes manufacturing for several interior components.

The overall project is set to be complete within the year as Boeing aims to increase its 787 production rate in 2026.

The 787 Dreamliner is a twin-engine, long-range wide-body jet in service since 2011 and offered in three variants, with carrying capacity for 210 to 330 passengers. Boeing has collected a total of 2,270 orders for the 787 series jets, with 1,222 orders still to be filled.