Science and Engineering Complex gets final beam

Rising from behind a partition along Western Avenue in Allston, Harvard’s future Science and Engineering Complex (SEC) is taking shape. On Wednesday, the Harvard community, the Turner Construction team, Allston residents, and local representatives gathered for a “topping-off” ceremony to mark the occasion of the last steel beam going into place. When it’s completed in 2020, the 500,000-square-foot flagship of the University’s expanded campus in Allston will be home to more than 1,800 students, researchers, and faculty — roughly two-thirds of Harvard’s fastest-growing School, the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

Harvard Provost Alan Garber ’77, Ph.D. ’82 (from left), Mayor Martin J. Walsh, and President Drew Faust prepare to give the signal to raise the final beam of the Science and Engineering Complex in Allston.

A soft exosuit is demonstrated by doctoral candidate and research assistant Jaehyun Bae, a member of the Harvard Biodesign Lab, which is developing the technology at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Science.

Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh and President Drew Faust greet and thank members of the Turner Construction team before the final beam is raised.

Shaun Donovan ’87, M.P.A. ’95, M.Arch. ’95, Harvard’s senior strategist for Allston (from left), Dean Frank Doyle of the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and SEC architect Stefan Behnisch discuss with Tracy Palandjian ’93, M.B.A. ’97, what this moment represents for the for the University, the region, and interdisciplinary research more broadly.

Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh and Harvard President Drew Faust arrive on Western Avenue for the topping-off celebration.

Michael Behrisch (left) and Johanna Beyer, researchers at Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, demonstrate their data visualization technology in the i-lab lobby, across the street from the Science and Engineering Complex in Allston.

As the air horns blare, members of the construction crew reveal a banner facing Western Avenue.

Adorned with the traditional tree and flag, the ceremonial final beam is hoisted in the air to cap the morning’s festivities at the Science and Engineering Complex.