Beverly, MA Connolly Brothers Inc. has completed the new $16 million corporate headquarters for Harmonic Drive LLC, a manufacturer of gearheads, gear component sets, and servo actuators. Connolly Brothers provided pre-construction, design and engineering, and construction management services for the new 97,000 s/f office and manufacturing plant situated on a previously un-developed six-acre site in the Dunham Ridge Business Park.

Founded in Beverly in 1960, Harmonic Drive relocated from two buildings in Peabody to its new U.S. headquarters. “We are excited to be back in Beverly where it all started,” said Doug Olson, CEO at Harmonic Drive. “Connolly Brothers was the perfect fit for our project given their 140-year history in Beverly and their proximity to and experience with designing and building advanced technology facilities like ours. They were able to meet our stringent budget and schedule restraints, and deliver a high-quality building. We’re proud to be their new neighbor.”

A three-story office building and light manufacturing/assembly space occupy 47,000 s/f adjacent to a 50,000 s/f high-bay manufacturing space. For the new headquarters, Connolly had to contend with more than 50 feet of elevation change on the land while ensuring the space would address all of Harmonic Drive’s industry-specific concerns.

“When it comes to a company that makes gears that have been used not only all over the world but out of this world, on Mars and lunar rovers, we knew this project would come with some unique needs,” said Jay Connolly, president of Connolly Brothers. “That works well for us, as we’ve always avoided the one-size-fits-all approach in favor of custom-tailored solutions for our clients. It was a pleasure to work with Harmonic Drive on their new headquarters.”

Recently, Connolly Brothers has managed the construction of a 100,000 s/f and 80,000 s/f office and manufacturing facilities in Beverly for KROHNE and HighRes Bio-solutions, respectively.

The project team for this project included:
• Owner: Harmonic Drive LLC
• Architect: Connolly Brothers Inc
• Construction manager: Connolly Brothers Inc
• Electrical: D&D Electrical
• Site work: Pitt Pipeline

• Civil: Hayes Engineering

• Structural: JSN Associates.