Luncheon honors builders of the Sherman Center

Chancellor to Sherman Center workers: 'Welcome to your medical school'

Every day for the past two years, hundreds of construction workers skilled in dozens of trades have been on the job at UMass Medical School, building the soon-to-be-completed Albert Sherman Center. General contractor Suffolk Construction hosted a barbecue lunch to thank workers for their efforts, acknowledging their vital roles in bringing the state-of-the-art building project to fruition.

Held in the Commencement tent on Monday, June 4, on the campus quad adjacent to the construction site, the event gave state, school and project leadership an opportunity to express appreciation to the workers who have kept the complex project on time and of the highest quality.

Katherine Craven, executive director of the Massachusetts School Building Authority, called the project unlike any other that Massachusetts has built in its history. “The amount of pride you bring to your jobs and what you do every day for us here is going to have a lasting impact not only for the campus that Chancellor Collins operates, but also for the entire commonwealth,” she said.

Highlighting the vital role construction workers play in creating a building where research into cures for diseases will happen, Chancellor Michael F. Collins expressed gratitude for everyone’s hard work on the project. After a show of hands revealed that most in attendance are Massachusetts residents, he declared, “Many hands in this room are making that building work. Welcome to your medical school!”

Nearly 1,400 individuals have worked on the site in various capacities since construction began in April 2010. The $400 million project will add nearly 500,000 square-feet of research, educational and administrative space to the Worcester campus. Construction and operation of the facility will have an estimated $1 billion statewide economic impact overall, with direct construction spending supporting approximately 6,000 jobs. When fully operational, the Sherman Center is projected to support 1,600 jobs and $264 million in annual economic activity throughout the state.

“When you sit at the dinner table tonight, I want you to say, ‘I was as important as any person at UMass Medical School in curing disease,’” said Chancellor Collins. “From every one of us on this campus, we want to say thank you to you. We are going to change the course of the history of disease because of your handiwork.”

Related links:
Sherman Center construction moves inward
See a virtual 3-D tour inside the Sherman Center
Sherman Center video series: Virtual reality check
Sherman Center video series: Evolutionary design
Sherman Center video series: An early look at the Sherman Center lab spaces
Sherman Center website