Related Digital, Blackstone Mark One Million Union Work Hours at The Barn Data Center Campus in Saline Township

SALINE TOWNSHIP, Mich. — Related Digital, Blackstone, Oracle and Walbridge gathered with Michigan labor leaders on Aug. 27, 2026, to mark one million union craft hours logged at The Barn, a hyperscale AI data center campus under construction on 250 acres of former farmland along W. Michigan Avenue in Saline Township, roughly ten miles southwest of Ann Arbor.

More than 1,800 skilled tradespeople are currently working on the campus, which is projected to support more than 2,500 union construction jobs over the life of the project. Leaders from the Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council joined the celebration to recognize the workforce's commitment to construction safety, efficiency and excellence.

A Landmark Michigan Data Center Project

The Barn is a three-building hyperscale campus, with each building comprising approximately 550,000 square feet of data hall and support space, for a total of roughly 1.65 million square feet of data center space. The campus is designed to support more than one gigawatt of IT load for AI compute, placing it among the largest AI-focused campuses in North America. Development costs have been reported in the range of $10 billion to $16 billion for the full campus build-out.

Related Digital, the data center development and investment platform founded by Related Companies, is serving as developer. Blackstone is the capital partner on the project. Oracle Cloud Infrastructure and OpenAI are the campus's primary users. Walbridge, one of the country's largest privately held construction companies and a Detroit-founded firm with more than a century of relationships with Michigan's building trades, is serving as general contractor.

"Today, as we celebrate 1 million work hours and the incredible progress that's been made, we also celebrate Michigan's long history of leading in industrial innovation, thanks to its skilled labor force," said Bruce A. Beal, Jr., President of Related Companies. "This project is proof that we can reenergize our skilled trades, reenergize manufacturing across the country, and carry forward Michigan's legacy of powering American competitiveness."

Construction Progress Across the 250-Acre Campus

Construction crews have installed significant quantities of materials across the campus since breaking ground. To date, workers have placed 240,000 feet — approximately 45 miles — of low- and medium-voltage duct, an amount equivalent to the driving distance between Detroit and Ann Arbor laid end to end. Crews have also poured 25,900 cubic yards of concrete, erected 12,000 tons of structural steel, and placed 82,000 bolts across the campus.

Mike Forman, Global Head of Digital Infrastructure at Blackstone Real Estate, said the milestone reflects the scale of investment flowing into AI-driven infrastructure. "As demand for digital infrastructure continues to accelerate, projects like this demonstrate how investment in AI infrastructure can create meaningful economic opportunities for local communities and workers," Forman said. "We are grateful for the partnership of Related Digital, Oracle, Walbridge and skilled trades workers on a project that is helping position the state at the center of America's digital infrastructure buildout."

Mahesh Thiagarajan, Executive Vice President of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, described the campus as one of the most consequential technology infrastructure projects in Michigan's history. "The Barn represents a major investment in Michigan's workforce and future — creating thousands of high-quality union jobs today and expanding long-term opportunities for Michigan workers," Thiagarajan said, adding that the project is committed to protecting local natural resources and ensuring the campus covers its own energy costs.

First-in-the-Nation Labor Agreement

The Barn is being built under a project labor agreement described by the parties as the first of its kind in the country, executed under the National Maintenance Agreement and covering all 14 signatory affiliated skilled trade unions. The project is also the first data center to be built under a memorandum of understanding between OpenAI and North America's Building Trades Unions.

Mike Haller, CEO of Walbridge, said the labor structure brought together owners, contractors and the building trades around shared commitments to safety, opportunity and respect. "The Barn is being built under an innovative labor agreement that brought together owners, contractors and the building trades with a shared commitment to safety, opportunity and respect," Haller said. "We're proud to work alongside these skilled men and women as they help build one of the most significant projects in our state's history."

Steve Claywell, Secretary Treasurer of the Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council, called the milestone a direct reflection of the workforce's commitment. "The 1 million hour milestone celebrated today is a direct reflection of the unwavering commitment shared by all the men and women of the Michigan Building Trades to continue to build this State," Claywell said. "The relentless commitment to training and safety continue to be paramount in what they do every day."

The Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council represents nearly 100,000 construction workers statewide.

Project and Market Context

The broader Saline Township site encompasses more than 1,000 acres, with the 250-acre data center campus occupying a portion of the tract and the balance designated for preservation as farmland, wetlands, woodlands and open space, according to project materials.

Related Digital currently has data center projects underway in Ontario, Wyoming, Michigan, Missouri, Illinois and Texas. Blackstone manages more than $1.3 trillion in assets under management across real estate, private equity, credit, infrastructure and other strategies.