“Topping Out” Ceremony for the Wilshire Grand’s Concrete Core

After three years of hard work and 744 days since the historic mat pour, the “Wilshire Grand Core and Steel Topping Out” ceremony was celebrated on March 8, 2016.   Workers from the construction project’s manager, Turner Construction, The Conco Companies and officials from the project’s architect, AC Martin Partners, representatives from the project’s owner’s, Korean Air, and others were on-hand to celebrate the event. 

The ceremony consisted of lifting the last steel beam into place, which had been signed by all of the workers, owners and a group of dignitaries.  The beam, weighing 2,100 pounds and 35 feet long, had been trucked in from Eloy, Arizona.  In following with the tradition, a U.S. flag and tree was placed on top of the beam.  The tradition of holding a topping out ceremony began as a religious rite that is traced back to ancient Scandinavia.  The practice of placing a tree on top of a newly finished building was done to appease tree-dwelling spirits that had been displaced during the construction.  

Chris Martin, the lead architect on the project, noted there is still much work to do on the project.  However, he added that they would be here again next year on March 8, 2017 in another ceremony to celebrate the completion of the building.  This date is not just coincidental, but the birthday of Yang Ho Cho, chairman of Hanjin International Corp, which owns Korean Air.

The completion of the 73-story concrete core signifies a major achievement in the project.  At 892-ft. high, the concrete core required 32,000 cubic yards of concrete and 50 million pounds of rebar to construct.  When finished, the Wilshire Grand will be the tallest building in the U.S. west of the Mississippi River.   

The Conco Companies’ goal is to be the best supplier of commercial concrete services for the Western U.S.  We bring our extensive expertise and professionalism to each project and continue to upgrade and expand facilities to better serve the growing market.  Before you start your next project, please contact us for more information about our trusted commercial concrete services.

Source: latimes.com/local/california/la-me-adv-wilshire-grand-topping-out-20160313-story.html