Muhlenberg College to hold Topping off Ceremony
The Butz Construction Company will soon place the final steel beam into place on the Seegers Union Expansion. In honor of the occasion, we cordially invite you to attend a Topping Off Ceremony* at 1:15 p.m. on October 30, 2009.Tuesday, October 27, 2009 11:22 AM
Participants will gather on the sidewalk at the northwest corner of the construction site (near Brown Hall) for brief comments from representatives of construction company, the architects, the President Randy Helm, the Chair of the Board of Trustees, and the Student Body President, then watch the final beam rise into place. Light refreshments will be served.
Beginning Friday, October 23, the final beam went on display in Parents Plaza. All members of the campus community were invited to sign their names on the beam before it is lifted into place.
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*Topping Off
In building construction, a topping off ceremony is held when the last beam is placed at the top of a building. A topping off ceremony is usually held to commemorate the event.
While common in England, Germany and Poland, the origins of the ceremony are obscure. Its practice has long been an important component of timber frame building. This tradition migrated to America with European craftsman. A small conifer tree is placed on the topmost beam, often with flags and streamers tied to it. A toast is usually drunk and sometimes the workmen are treated to a meal. The ceremony has also been common in the US when a skyscraper is completed. The last beam to be hoisted is painted white and signed by all the workmen involved.
The practice of topping off a new building can be traced to the ancient Scandinavian religious practice of placing a tree on the top of a new building to appease the tree-dwelling spirits of their ancestors that had been displaced. The practice migrated to England with Scandinavian invaders and took root there.
Today, a non-religious ceremony is often held to commemorate this milestone in the construction of a building. All tradesman on the job usually join in the celebration as well as the supervisors, representatives of the architecture and engineering firms, the owner or representatives of the owning organization, donors, and any VIPs that are invited.
