So, my employer is building a new office next to my building. They started last year, so it is just now coming to the completion of the skeleton, all the beams are up. Well, now that it is completed, there is a tree and an american flag on the top of it. In true style of the company, an email was sent to the employees explaining the significance. I thought it was interesting, so, in true Corey style, I'm putting it up on my blog. Here it is:
The "topping out" or "topping off" ceremony is a tradition that has been traced to around 2700 B.C. It has become a custom for ironworkers whenever the skeleton of a building or bridge is completed and the uppermost steel beam is being positioned. Before that final beam is hoisted, workers sign their names on the beam, and an evergreen tree and a flag are attached to the beam. Two ironworkers who are called "connectors" set the beam in its final position. There are various interpretations of the symbolic significance of the evergreen tree and the flag. Some say the evergreen signifies that the job incurred no worker injuries or loss of life; others suggest the evergreen signifies good luck for the future occupants. The flag is thought to be a patriotic symbol, perhaps as a protest in response to the "American Plan" launched in 1919 that promised the destruction of union.
Not only the workers got to sign their name, as the last beam was placed in the main hall of our building for all the employees to sign.