Huge new jet-building plant at Pearson Airport in Mississauga will be more environmentally friendly

The new state-of-the-art business jet manufacturing plant Bombardier is building at Pearson Airport in Mississauga will significantly reduce the Canadian-based firm’s environmental footprint, company officials said this morning.  

On hand at Pearson to provide more details about the 770,000-sq.-ft. Global Manufacturing Centre that Montreal-based Bombardier will pay just under $500 million to build, Bombardier president and CEO Eric Martel said construction is proceeding as planned and that the plant will open in 2023. 

Furthermore, company officials say, the transition from Bombardier’s final assembly plant currently located in Downsview, which was built in the 1960s, to the new facility will greatly reduce the company’s industrial and environmental footprint in the area.  

Environmentally-responsible features of the new manufacturing centre will reduce energy consumption by nearly 60 per cent and lower greenhouse gas emissions by more than half. 

The new plant will employ the 2,000 workers currently at the Downsview facility. 

“We are extremely proud of the people who have been producing our best-in-class business jets for decades here in Ontario, and with the rising demand for large-cabin long-range aircraft, we are looking forward to providing our teams with a new, state-of-the-art work environment,” said Martel, adding the huge new plant also signals Bombardier’s long-term commitment to building jets in Mississauga. 

Bombardier’s CEO also thanked the City of Mississauga, Region of Peel and the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA), which oversees Pearson Airport, “for making us feel truly welcome in our future new home here in Mississauga.” 

Mayor Bonnie Crombie, also on hand at Pearson this morning, said the new plant will strengthen the city’s “world-class aviation sector by continuing its relationship with Mississauga-based companies that provide leading-edge capabilities to support Bombardier’s family of Global business jets.” 

GTAA officials say Bombardier’s “focus on innovation and connection” is a perfect fit for Pearson Airport as it builds back “a better, more resilient, more innovative aviation and aerospace sector right here in Mississauga.” 

The Global Manufacturing Centre is expected to help rebuild the Airport Employment Zone, which pre-COVID was home to the second-largest concentration of jobs in Canada, according to the GTAA. 

When the plant opens, it will be home to the most advanced aircraft manufacturing processes in the world, says Bombardier, which with more than 68,000 employees is a global leader in the transportation industry. The  firm, with facilities in 28 countries, also builds trains.  

“…the cutting-edge facility will optimize final assembly operations for all Global business jets, including the industry flagship Global 7500 business jet,” Bombardier, which has signed a long-term lease agreement with the GTAA to remain at the location, said earlier. “The (plant) will also reinforce Canada’s leading position in the business aviation market.”