Modine Manufacturing announced on November 11, 2026 that its newly built 682,000‑square‑foot plant in Grand Prairie, Texas, has begun commercial production of Airedale chillers. The facility is dedicated to 2 MW and 3 MW chillers with free‑cooling technology, targeting the fast‑growing data‑center market, including hyperscale cloud providers, colocation operators and high‑density artificial‑intelligence computing environments.
Production ramp and employment impact
The first production line started operating in November 2026. Modine plans to have four operational 2 MW lines by the end of its current fiscal year and to expand from a single‑shift operation to a three‑shift model. The rollout depends on equipment commissioning, workforce readiness and other operational considerations, but the company expects the plant to become the largest Airedale chiller manufacturing site in its global footprint.
“The launch of our Grand Prairie facility is an important milestone in the plan we announced last year to expand U.S. manufacturing capacity for Airedale cooling technologies,” said Neil D. Brinker, Modine president and CEO. “Scaling our capacity close to our customers enables us to partner with them to deliver the right highly engineered cooling solutions to help them advance their progress and achieve their performance objectives.”
Four‑state build‑out
The Grand Prairie plant is part of a broader investment announced in July 2025 that includes facilities in Franklin, Wisconsin; Grenada, Mississippi; and Jefferson City, Missouri. Modine opened a 153,000‑square‑foot plant in Franklin in September 2025, which is already producing Airedale data‑center cooling systems. The Grand Prairie site is roughly 4.5 times larger than the Franklin plant, reflecting the company’s confidence in demand for energy‑efficient cooling solutions.
In September 2026, Modine was recruiting for up to 300 positions across first and second shifts at the Franklin facility, indicating a parallel effort to build a skilled workforce that can support the ramp‑up at Grand Prairie.
Broader product portfolio
Beyond chillers, Airedale’s data‑center thermal‑management portfolio includes dry coolers, coolant distribution units and intelligent controls. Modine describes these systems as engineered to maximize efficiency and water conservation while meeting the complex cooling demands of high‑density computing environments. The Grand Prairie plant adds dedicated manufacturing for one product category within this broader range.
Local economic significance
The new plant is expected to generate a substantial number of well‑paying manufacturing jobs in Grand Prairie and the surrounding Dallas‑Fort Worth metroplex. By increasing domestic production capacity, Modine reduces reliance on overseas supply chains and supports the region’s growing technology sector.
Modine’s expansion aligns with broader trends of reshoring critical technology components to the United States, a priority shared by many local leaders who seek to strengthen the regional economy and ensure supply‑chain resilience for mission‑critical infrastructure.
Next steps
The company’s next milestone is commissioning the remaining production lines, completing workforce training and adding additional shifts to reach the full operating configuration outlined in its plan. Successful execution will further cement Grand Prairie’s role as a hub for advanced manufacturing and data‑center cooling technology.
Original reporting: Grand Prairie local news (OBBM news search) — read the source article.
