The Path to Grayling
Saab’s Newest Domestic Manufacturing Facility Planned for Grayling, Michigan.
Saab, Inc. is committed to strengthening United States defense manufacturing and production capabilities, working to keep people and society safe. Saab’s planned manufacturing facility in Grayling, Michigan would increase and modernize domestic production of our close combat and precision fire weapons systems, supporting America’s armed forces.
Growth in Grayling
Saab is an established U.S. advanced manufacturer, and once approved, the new state-of-the-art munitions facility in Grayling, Michigan will be Saab’s tenth facility in the U.S.
Northern Michigan has an excellent workforce with the manufacturing skills needed to grow the defense industry. Notably, the facility will also be close to Camp Grayling, home to the Michigan National Guard. This allows Saab to engage directly with the company’s customers to better understand their needs and deliver exceptional products at speed.
With capacity for advanced manufacturing and engineering, once approved and open this new facility will be a world-class asset to the American industrial base, our national security and the U.S. warfighter.
Saab in the Community
Saab cares deeply about playing a positive role in the communities where we live and work and in society as a whole. In offices across the U.S., Saab is committed to supporting and strengthening the communities through investing in the local community and creating jobs.
Every year, Saab supports charitable organizations in our local communities, with a focus on those working to address hunger and food insufficiency in our veteran community.
Saab's Environmental Commitment
We also believe that responsibility for people, society and the environment is critical in order to create sustainable growth. We are committed to reducing our climate impact throughout the value chain and ensuring a healthy and safe workplace for all our employees.
Saab participated in several environmental stewardship studies, which found there will be no negative environmental impacts from our facility in Grayling. You can find the full reports below:
Environmental Stewardship Summary. Author: AKT Peerless
White Paper. Author: Dr Bonnie Packer
Community Turns Out for Saab Open House in Grayling, Michigan
Saab’s open house offered an in-depth look at the company’s plans for its advanced manufacturing facility and its commitment to the local community.
Saab Hosts Second Community Meeting in Grayling
Saab hosted a second community conversation in December to present more information on the proposed Grayling facility and answer community questions.
Did you know?
At full production, Saab aims to support 70+ new jobs for the Grayling, MI community, ranging from production and assembly to engineering and management positions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Saab plans to build an advanced manufacturing facility that will help meet the urgent, unmet needs of supplying the U.S. military and providing for national defense.
In the near term, the facility will be used for the final assembly and integration of shoulder-fired munitions and precision fire weapon systems. Longer term, it will engineer and produce missile weapons systems. This will be a world-class, advanced manufacturing and engineering facility.
Once the project has been approved, we expect the facility will open for operations in 2026.
We expect employment of 70+ full-time positions. We will hire locally for upper management, middle management and skilled workers, especially assemblers. Recruitment for the facility will likely begin in 2025.
The facility will be located in Grayling Township on a 388-acre land parcel already zoned for development. Saab estimates the facility would use around 60 acres. It is Saab’s desire to leave as much of the site as possible as natural landscape. The facility likely wouldn’t be visible from public roads.
No. The site is 3.5 miles from Camp Grayling. The facility will be on land zoned for development, surrounded primarily by other land zoned for industrial or commercial development.
The facility will partner with Camp Grayling for testing and training. Camp Grayling’s testing range is designed and certified to accommodate the munitions. We don’t anticipate a noticeable increase in the amount or level of noise.
The facility will resemble an office park building, including noise levels. The assembly that will take place uses hand tools. Standing outside, you would be more likely to hear birds chirping or cars passing by than sounds from the work going on inside.
Saab’s intention is to use a road built on the property connecting directly to the highway, so no materials are transported through the City of Grayling. Saab will not be using rail transport.
No. Any contaminants resulting from the assembly process will not be discharged into the Grayling Water Treatment Facility. Disposal will be by other means consistent with local, state and federal regulations.
We anticipate using glues and epoxies during assembly. The glues and epoxies that are used is very common and can in most cases be purchased at any local hardware store. We will be fully transparent and provide data sheets and other information about those materials when more decisions have been made about the assembly process. Any and all disposal of hazardous waste will be governed by Saab’s HAZMAT policy and procedures and applicable laws and regulations.
Some components delivered to the facility for use in the products contain PFAS substances. These substances are used to treat the products so they can endure extremely high temperatures. No surface treatments are conducted at the facility, and components containing PFAS will not come into contact with water or any other solvents. Therefore, there is no risk of PFAS leaking into the environment.
While Saab no longer manufactures the beloved automobiles, the company has a long history of manufacturing high-quality products that keep people and society safe, including aircraft, submarines, air traffic control equipment and live training systems.
Saab, Inc. is the U.S. subsidiary of Saab AB, an international defense, aerospace and security company. The company’s U.S. Headquarters is in Syracuse, New York, and Saab AB is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden.
With nine U.S. locations, Saab has almost 1,000 U.S. employees and 22,000 globally. The company serves the U.S. Department of Defense through a Special Security Agreement (SSA) that ensures their U.S. company Saab, Inc., remains free of foreign control or influence.
For a full list of frequently asked questions, please click here.