Satellite assembly floors, hangar slabs and office pads on ground leases are a new kind of project for a basin city that used to build mostly for oil and gas, and the first thing owners ask us is how a ground lease changes the site work. It changes plenty. The lessor often controls the utilities, the access road and the drainage, the tenant controls the building, and a site contractor has to work with both. We handle grading, pavement and underground work for lessees at Midland International Air and Space Port and for companies on other business-park land around the city.
Public records show how fast that market is moving. The Midland Development Corporation board and city council approved an incentive in July 2026 for a satellite manufacturing and production facility of more than 400,000 square feet at the Spaceport Business Park, described as $100 million in taxable investment through 2034 and 1,800 full-time positions at full build-out. A 2024 city agreement involves a space company bringing $78 million in assets to town by 2027 and 23 new jobs by 2033 in a hangar owned by the development corporation. We do not claim those projects; they are examples of the demand for large-bay floors and clear-span buildings that we serve.
The airport describes itself as the first commercial spaceport co-located with an FAA Part 139 commercial airport, and Phase 1 of its Spaceport Business Park covers 50 acres on the southeast side of the field, offered on ground leases negotiated by the development corporation.
Factory floors and hangar slabs with tight flatness targets
A satellite integration hall or aircraft hangar has a floor that must be flat, level, clean and electrically conductive or static dissipative in some cases. We coordinate with the structural engineer and the process designer to set joint spacing, reinforcement, surface treatment and curing. Large-bay slabs are poured in strips with laser-guided screeds, and we test flatness and levelness before the owner moves in equipment. See our work on super flat floor slabs for the tolerances involved.
Equipment pads for test stands, cranes and mechanical yards are separate pours with their own reinforcement and anchor bolt layouts. We verify the bolt locations with survey before the pour and again after the concrete has set.
Working on lease land and airport property
Airport property brings its own rules: security badges, vehicle permits, airfield lighting restrictions and height limits for cranes. Before mobilizing, we ask the airport and the development corporation for the access and construction rules, then incorporate them into our schedule and safety plan. Utilities on ground-lease land may be owned by the airport or the city, and tie-ins require the right party's approval.
Projects costing $50,000 or more are registered with the state accessibility program, and we make sure ramps, routes and parking meet those standards before the final inspection. We keep documents for the lessor and the lender, including as-built drawings, test reports and warranties.
Loop 250, I-20 and the industrial side of town
A June 2024 TxDOT notice proposed building Loop 250 main lanes in Midland County between Fairgrounds Road and CR 1150 (Elkins Road), with an overpass at Todd Drive and turnaround lanes. An earlier 2019 public meeting proposed improving I-20 between Loop 250 and FM 1788 with a new interchange at County Road 1250, new ramps and improved frontage roads to serve the industrialized area there. Road projects change access and drainage along these corridors, and a site contractor who waits for the final plans to learn that will pay for it.
We review published TxDOT projects when we plan a parcel on Loop 250 or I-20. We ask whether the parcel will lose frontage, gain a frontage road or face construction closures, and we adjust driveway design, drainage and haul routes accordingly.
Seismic response areas and the ground
The Railroad Commission has created seismic response areas in the Midland-Odessa region. A September 2021 notice reported six felt earthquakes of magnitude 3.5 or greater since February 2020 in the Gardendale area, including a 3.7 about eight miles northwest of Midland, and the agency later suspended disposal well permits covering 33 deep disposal wells and enlarged the area after a magnitude 5.4 event in December 2022. Building owners cannot control that, but they can ask the structural engineer what the design requires and make sure the foundation work matches.
On the ground, we build compacted pads on caliche and sandy soils, install drainage so water does not collect under slabs and follow the geotechnical report for subgrade treatment. We avoid shortcuts on compaction, joint detailing and curing because they matter more than ever when a building holds sensitive equipment.
Where large-bay budgets tend to move
The biggest cost items are floor flatness requirements, thickness, reinforcement and the number of embedded items. A floor with a tight flatness specification requires more labor, specialized equipment and sometimes a topping or grinding. Utilities for a manufacturing process, such as process water, high-capacity power and compressed air, may need larger trenches and heavier backfill than ordinary commercial service.
We recommend that owners share process loads and equipment layouts early. That lets us size pads, locate trenches and set slab thicknesses together, and avoids saw-cutting or coring a new floor.
Industrial users, developers and oilfield neighbors
Industrial and manufacturing owners are the main audience for this work, along with commercial developers who build to suit. Many owners in the basin also work in oil, gas and midstream, and some are diversifying into aerospace or logistics.
We also build in Odessa and across the Permian Basin, so owners with operations in both cities can use one crew.
Send us the lease exhibit and drawings
We will review the site rules, price the floor and the underground work and list assumptions. See our aircraft hangar page for related work.
Common Questions
Can you pour a floor with tight flatness requirements?
Yes. We use laser screeds, precise forming and controlled curing, then measure flatness and levelness. Specifications must be clear on method and tolerance, and we discuss them before bidding.
How does a ground lease affect site work?
The lessor may control utilities, access and drainage. We request the lease exhibits and construction rules early, coordinate tie-ins and make sure our schedule fits their approval process.
Do earthquakes change how you build?
The structural engineer sets the design requirements. We build the foundation and slab to those drawings with accurate reinforcement placement and good consolidation.
What is your approach to caliche?
We identify it from the boring logs, use equipment suited to the hardness, and price by material class.
Can you build a hangar pad before the tenant is final?
We can build a graded and compacted pad with utilities to the lot line, but we recommend waiting for the tenant's loads before pouring the floor.