LuxWall, a Ypsilanti-based glass-based insulation solution provider, will build a production facility at an industrial site owned by Bedrock in Detroit’s Delray neighborhood. Bedrock will serve as developer and landlord.
The new 276,000-square-foot facility will be located on West Fort Street at the former Sakthi Industrial Campus. The building will model LuxWall’s first production operation, which opened earlier this year in Litchfield, southwest of Jackson.
The clean-energy manufacturing facility near Jackson is the world’s first high-volume, vacuum-insulating glass (VIG) production plant.
“The growing demand for our products is exciting, and so is the opportunity to work with Bedrock and be part of Detroit’s transformation,” says Scott Thomsen, co-founder and CEO of LuxWall. “This project will support the city, brings jobs to Detroit and Michigan, and help our customers improve the environment.”
More than 30 percent of the world’s energy is consumed by buildings, and windows are the single-largest source of energy loss in the built environment, according to LuxWall.
To counter this, LuxWall has developed technologies to manufacture vacuum-insulating glass that performs like a wall. LuxWall Enthermal VIG is five times more insulating than double-paned glass and reduces the energy loss of homes and buildings by up to 45 percent, the company says.
Thomsen says Enthermal is “ideal” for retrofitting buildings as its thin profile allows it to be easily installed in existing window frames, reducing re-glazing costs by up to 50 percent for end users. In addition, the payback for most projects is three times faster than other available glass products.
“The next-generation products LuxWall will be manufacturing at the Bedrock Industrial Campus have the potential to revolutionize how homes and commercial buildings reduce heat loss and energy consumption,” says Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan. “LuxWall could have located anywhere, but chose Detroit because they see it as a place where their innovation can flourish.”
LuxWall joins LM Manufacturing and Diversified Synergies on the site in Detroit, emphasizing the demand for local, modern industrial facilities. LuxWall says it expects to add 277 local, sustainable jobs at the new plant.
“LuxWall’s investment in Detroit is a win for both the economy and the environment,” says Kofi Bonner, CEO of Bedrock. “Their innovative products will help reduce retrofitting costs and promote sustainable construction. This investment will add hundreds of jobs, stimulate local growth, and reinforce Detroit’s position as the go-to industrial hub, all while contributing to the revitalization of the Delray Industrial area.”
In November 2023, LuxWall received a $31.7 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to support the Detroit project as part of the DOE’s program to strengthen clean energy supply chains and accelerate domestic clean energy manufacturing.
Last month, the company announced it had secured its Series B funding round led by Climate Investment and Barclays Sustainable Impact Capital. Other prominent climate-focused investors include Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Prelude Ventures, 2150, Khosla Ventures, Baruch Future Ventures, and Carbon Equity.
For more information, visit LuxWall.com.
