We have a new plan for PDC. Here’s what’s coming next to our Dearborn campus.

After 30 years in commercial real estate, I’ve seen my fair share of renovations, new construction, and demolition projects, but nothing quite so impactful as the global effort Ford Motor Company is making to transform our workspaces and enable our employees to do their best work. Opening Ford’s first new World Headquarters in 70 years is certainly a professional highlight for me and so many of our team. We are proud of the work we do every day to bring us closer to our commitment of more than 90% of global office employees working from new or renovated workspaces by the end of 2027.

Now, we are transforming the former Product Development Center and joining it to the World Headquarters building to create a 3.3 million square-foot World Headquarters complex by 2029. The former PDC building will become World Headquarters South.

“At Ford we have always understood that to build a future you have to renew the places where you work, design, and build,” said Executive Chair Bill Ford during the grand opening of the Ford World Headquarters. “It’s a rhythm that runs throughout our history. This is in our DNA.”

We have said that we would demolish the PDC building because it no longer supported the way our teams worked, and we needed the site for another use. The team went back to the drawing board and found an even better solution: a plan to adapt the building with the future in mind. Let me tell you more about what’s going to happen and why it is so critical for our future.

Bringing Teams Together

Over the last 10 years, we have modernized key global facilities to transform the employee experience. Across the world, we have been consolidating teams into new or renovated workspaces designed with our employees' needs in mind. Bringing skill teams together for in-person collaboration has led to faster decision-making and more efficient problem-solving across the business.

At Ford’s new World Headquarters, we see design and product development teams easily move between floors and gather to iterate on future products more quickly. This used to mean getting into your car, driving to another site or across campus, parking, and going to a new building to meet colleagues or experience a prototype in real life.

What if more teams could benefit from this close collaboration?

Becoming World Headquarters South

The PDC was originally built in 1953 as the center of our Research and Engineering campus, featuring design studios, review courtyards, a design rotunda, engineering workspace, and more. This is where iconic vehicles like the Mach 1, GT Mustang, and Ranger were designed and unveiled to the world. Even the Ford Tractor was once designed here!

Over the decades, the building was expanded and became a maze that no longer suited modern product development. With investment concentrated in other strategic buildings around campus, the plan was formed to demolish the PDC to add parking closer to the new World Headquarters and relieve a frustration point for employees.

Our team found a new opportunity that solved for parking — more on that below — while bringing more employees together to benefit from increased collaboration. The renovation will refresh the façade and increase natural light by adding windows and skylights while removing interior walls and drop ceilings. New amenities — including cafés, markets, wellness rooms, reflection rooms, and mothers’ rooms — will mirror the modern look and feel of our World Headquarters.

Beyond providing modernized workspace for 5,000 employees, the former PDC design studios will become a double-height, flexible workspace for labs, vehicle testing, and prototype work. The building will also feature a dedicated wing for meetings with vendors and visitors outside of secure Ford workspaces. By physically connecting the two buildings, these specialty spaces will support design, engineering, and corporate teams across the entire complex.

World Headquarters South will also become the new home of Ford Racing. As Ford invests in the knowledge transfer between its racing business and product development, the racing team will move from their previous location outside the main Ford campus to better collaborate with the business. Lessons learned in the world’s most extreme races translate directly into the technology and experiences we design and engineer across our vehicle lineup.

“As we deliver the Ford+ plan, our teams must collaborate more closely than ever,” said Jim Farley, Ford president and CEO. “This includes connecting the Ford Racing teams who innovate on the track with their colleagues across the business and help bring those advances to our customers' vehicles. And to power the best team in the industry, we're providing modern, tech-forward workplaces, plus world-class amenities.”

We Heard Your Feedback

A frequent desire we hear from employees within the Dearborn campus has been a company fitness center. World Headquarters South will include a 30,000-square-foot fitness center with state-of-the-art cardio and strength-training equipment, a studio space, and locker rooms with showers. Employees will be able to easily walk to this new amenity from nearby buildings or parking structures within Ford’s refreshed walkable campus.

We are inviting employees to weigh in on other elements they want to see inside the center. Follow this link to take the short survey.

Supporting both buildings and the Dearborn campus will be a new, larger 3,100-space parking deck with EV charging stations, ADA parking stalls, and ample space to support employees on campus.

This multiyear, phased construction plan works in tandem with the construction at the main World Headquarters building, which will be completed by the end of 2027. As we see more work on the campus, it will require some patience as we all work together on this transformation.

Employees currently in the PDC will begin working from the renovated workspace in early 2028, with final zones complete at the end of 2029. When complete, we will have transformed two of the largest office buildings Ford Motor Company owns, accommodating 10,000 to 11,000 employees, with approximately 16,000 employees within a 15-minute walk of the World Headquarters complex.

Q&A re: employee experience

Q. For those of us in PDC currently, do we need to move again or will work take place while we are in the building?

Teams will shift from zones A, B, and C, and into other zones of the PDC building. Work will then begin in the vacated zones to build a dividing wall and separate all building systems from the main building.

Q. Why don’t we just stay at the Glass House?

Teams already see the value of relocating to the Dearborn campus to be close to the core teams and leadership and new amenities at the WHQ. By moving in the first quarter of 2026, they have benefited from being collocated and alongside these amenities sooner. This also allows decommissioning to begin on the Glass House.

Q What other employees will be coming to the PDC?

Once the renovation is complete, we will look to bring additional employees from satellite offices closer to home. These groups will vary based on existing synergies and business priorities at the time.

Q. What will it be like working during construction?

Zones under construction will be walled off and physically separated from employee work zones. There will be periods of noise and vibration, all of which is monitored and within safety tolerances.

Q. PDC is an old building. Is it safe to be in there with construction work?

Employee health and safety are top of mind for all of us. We will work with Environmental and Health and Safety partners throughout the project’s duration to continuously record air sampling and ensure all safety protocols are strictly adhered to for employee safety.

Q. How much will the fitness center cost employees?

We are still finalizing the details and will share more soon.

Q. Is there enough space on campus for all of these additional employees?

Yes, the campus was designed to support an even higher employee volume and we are adding additional parking options and shuttle support as part of the plan.

Q. How will traffic be impacted?

A study has been completed by a traffic consultant. The main arterial roads have adequate capacity to support the population on campus. The interior roads have been reconfigured to address internal congestion. When we finish the new parking deck, we will address additional roadway enhancements around the new deck.

Q. Road names are changing, what do I need to do?

Additional communication will come in the next few months in advance of the road name changes taking place. Building addresses can always be found on Onsite.ford.com.