Topping Out Ceremony, Peterhouse Technology Park

On Monday 15th April, the topping out ceremony for ‘The Optic’ at Peterhouse Technology Park was held, with key stakeholders, construction workers, and the design team in attendance. A longstanding tradition in the construction industry, the topping-out ceremony signifies the end of the vertical construction phase and the completion of the highest point of the structure.

The event began with speeches from Carl Bennett, SDC Director; Ian Wright, Peterhouse College Senior Bursar, and Gareth Roberts, British Land Head of Development.

The attendees were then invited sign a structural steel beam which will be placed inside the buildings main atrium and leave their legacy on the building. Sadly, heavy rain and winds prevented this being lifted into place on the day. The beam has since been installed and will serve as a hidden reminder of this milestone.

To end the event, there was a reception with coffee, and cake provided by The Phoenix Trust, a social enterprise and charity based in Milton, Cambridge.

Once complete, ‘The Optic’ will provide 95,000 sq ft of flexible workspace and state-of-the-art laboratories, adjacent to the recently completed ARM HQ building. Built for clients British Land Plc, the structure will include fully fitted atriums and cores alongside office spaces fitout to CAT A. Built at Peterhouse, it poses an ideal location for a new lab-enabled office development within the golden triangle and therefore compliments British Land’s strategy to leverage their campus model expertise outside London.