Half of steel erected in Boeing’s new Dreamliner plant in North Charleston

Steel erection at the Boeing Co.’s new final assembly plant in North Charleston has passed the 50% complete mark, and is on schedule for an October 2010 completion, the firm designing and building the structure said.

BE&K/Turner, design-builder for the Boeing Charleston 787 expansion, began steel erection in March and set the first steel trusses in May.

Tara Robertson, Community Affairs Director for BE&K/Turner, said the record so far for hiring minority-owned subcontractors and other historically underutilized businesses for the Boeing project is substantial.

“As of July 1, 2010, of the nearly $187 million, or 73.55%, of available trade direct volume awarded to date, 27.17% has been committed to diverse firms,” Robertson said.

BE&K/Turner’s Kenny Anderson, construction manager, said more than 75% of the trade contracts have been awarded to South Carolina companies, a large percentage of which are Lowcountry-based or tapping into the local work force.

“Actually, 89.65% of work has been awarded to South Carolina firms when taking into account that some services and materials — such as the Four-Hook Bridge Cranes and Hangar Doors — are not available in the South Carolina marketplace,” Anderson said.

Boeing’s South Carolina 787 expansion, for which the joint venture is teamed with design partner BRPH, represents BE&K/Turner’s 12th major project together. The BE&K/Turner/BRPH design-build team is headquartered at the Building Group’s regional office in Greenville.