The development of a £40 million state-of-the-art aerospace manufacturing and design facility for Moog Inc. in Gloucestershire has reached practical completion.

Developer Barberry Industrial has delivered a 208,000 sq ft centre of excellence on a 10-acre site at Ashchurch, Tewkesbury.

The facility is a carbon neutral building, designed to a BREEAM excellent EPC A+ standard. It is expected to be operational later this year.

Barberry, the West Midlands-based development and investment company, started construction on the site off the A46, near junction 9 of the M5, in April 2021 having agreed a 35-year lease with Moog.

Main contractor Readie Construction delivered the £28 million construction contract, which included both Cat A and Cat B fit out works.

Mark Lawton, ACC division general manager at Moog, said: "Moving into our new manufacturing and design facility in Gloucestershire marks the beginning of an exciting new era for Moog. The Barberry team has delivered an outstanding centre of engineering excellence."

Jon Robinson, development director at Barberry, said: "This has been a fantastic award-winning project and it has been a pleasure to work alongside Moog, a global leader in aerospace manufacturing, as we hand over their new facility allowing their business to service new contracts, generate new highly skilled jobs and enjoy continued success in Gloucestershire.

"We are very proud both to have delivered a wonderful facility on behalf of the company and to have led the way on what is one of the few carbon neutral manufacturing facilities in the UK, fulfilling several green credentials allowing Moog to address sustainability while also incorporating several staff wellbeing provisions within the building including a fully equipped gymnasium and staff relaxation and welfare area providing an excellent working environment for Moog employees."

The building has been fitted with 2,400 450W PV solar panels capable of generating 1 MW of energy.

Also included is a state-of-the-art 50,000 litre underground rainwater harvesting system which supplies water to the toilets, saving an estimated 1,000 m3 of water energy each year.

Elsewhere, it has EV charging points, the highest quality insulation material, bat boxes, bird boxes and insect hotels, heat recovery systems reducing natural gas consumption, and LED intelligent lighting throughout.

The new development has easy access to the M5, the M50, the M42 and the motorway network beyond. It is expected to attract substantial investment to the region and safeguard the employment of a highly-skilled workforce while creating new jobs.

Moog's existing Tewkesbury Aircraft Controls Segment operation is the global centre of excellence for design of servo valves and has a large engineering division housed within its existing facility. It is the town's largest employer and has operated from there for over 40 years.

The highly anticipated new facility will help foster further growth in Moog's engine and flight control products for military and commercial aerospace programs. Moog sees the expansion as an integral part of its commitment to long-term manufacturing and sales in the UK.

Back in May, Punchline reported on the soft launch of Moog's new headquarters.