SAAB West Lafayette

The 116,000 square-foot (10,777 square-meter) advanced manufacturing facility supports the production of key airframe components for the Boeing–Saab T-7A Red Hawk trainer aircraft while also accommodating research and development activities focused on autonomy, artificial intelligence, and advanced manufacturing technologies. Located in Purdue University’s Discovery Park District, the facility includes manufacturing and office space, collaboration areas, wellness facilities, break areas, and outdoor patios.

Architecturally, the facility combines high-performance manufacturing requirements with a refined contemporary design expression. To support the project's architecturally exposed structural steel (AESS) features, CAST CONNEX Architectural Tapers and Universal Pin Connectors (ART + UPC) were incorporated into the structural system. These cast steel components enabled the design team to create elegant true-pin steel connections with smooth geometric transitions that would have been difficult to achieve using conventional steel fabrication methods.

The use of the ART + UPC assemblies contributed both structurally and aesthetically, simplifying the fabrication of the exposed steel connections while delivering the clean architectural appearance demanded by the project's prominent entrance canopy and other exposed structural elements. By leveraging the pre-engineered steel castings, the design team achieved slender, visually refined members and highly expressive structural details that complement the advanced technology mission of the facility.