Connolly Brothers receives DBIA award for Harmonic Drive headquarters

Beverly, MA Connolly Brothers, Inc. won a Bronze Award from the New England chapter of the Design Build Institute of America (DBIA). At DBIA New England’s annual awards gala, the firm was lauded for its work on 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 97,000 s/f office and manufacturing plant situated on a previously undeveloped 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. 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, including the capacity to move heavy machinery freely about the manufacturing facility floor.

“Connolly Brothers was the perfect fit for our project,” said Harmonic Drive CEO Doug Olson. “From the beginning, the team at Connolly Brothers really listened to our needs and understood our requirements as a manufacturing business.” Olson adds that Connolly’s “experience with designing and building advanced technology facilities like ours” led to the ability to “meet our stringent budget and schedule restraints and deliver a high-quality building.”

Connolly’s project team included D&D Electrical (electrical), Pitt Pipeline (site work), Hayes Engineering (civil), and JSN Associates (structural).

“DBIA upholds and promotes the same principles that our family business has been dedicated to for 140 years: integrity and an unwavering commitment to high-quality construction outcomes,” said Connolly Brothers president Jay Connolly. “We are humbled and honored to be recognized by DBIA New England for the second year in a row.”