New headquarters Apple reached the perfect limit of construction

What happens when a "meticulous" corporation like Apple is directly involved in the design and construction of its new "headquarters". The answer, perhaps an office building with a "standard to nanometer" design.

Steve Jobs ' final "product" - Apple's latest headquarters in Cupertino, California - is a "future" campus that focuses on every detail. From how the wiring arrangement, to how to place underground pipes, every small part of the 260,000 square meter building system is meticulously cared for.

But, to build a perfect building is not an easy task - the members involved in the building process have the same idea.

Ever since Apple announced the new "headquarters" construction plan in 2011, the time when the group officially moved its headquarters had to step back. Steve Jobs' original plan was to complete this project in 2015, but according to those involved in the project, it wasn't until the spring of this year that everything was officially completed. Procedures for obtaining a "contribution" from the city are not small to this delay.

Compare Apple's old and new "headquarters" parameters.

Apple did not disclose any official information about the cost of building a new "headquarters" , but the previous management of the project is estimated to be about $ 5 billion. In particular, more than 1 billion USD is spent on the interior of the main building.

With such a project consuming so much time and effort, some people in the architecture industry have "questioned" whether Apple is investing in the right direction. According to Professor Louise Mozingo at UC Berkeley, this headquarters is "out of the" trend of "open" offices built to enhance collaborative efficiency at work. The main office building - a giant-sized glass ring, compared to a spaceship - could make people find it difficult to move around.

"Apple's goal is not to maximize the efficiency of the office, but to create a symbolic space for the corporation, " Ms. Louise said.

An Apple spokesman declined to comment on the issue.

The largest glass ring in the world

According to the 2013 plan, when completed, Apple's headquarters can accommodate up to 14,200 employees. The main building, which has the largest glass ring in the world , will be covered by thousands of trees. Almost nothing will be left of the cement-filled campus that Apple received from HP, except for a rudimentary house with the age of the whole century that the group "preserved" intact.

But what surprised the participants in the project, lies in Apple's management considering the process of building a new headquarters, the same way they designed and manufactured pocket electronics.

And so, there are many rules set out in the design and construction process, such as: No pipes are allowed to reflect on the glass surface, along with more than 30 pages of instructions on special woods used. in building construction.

Apple headquarters can accommodate up to 14,200 employees.

The errors in distance and size of materials are also something that Apple focuses on. For normal projects, the maximum permissible size error is about 1/8 inch; however, the error that this group requires is much smaller - even for the underground architecture.

Apple's ability to design responsibly contributes significantly to the quality of this project, however, their expectations are not always consistent with the actual conditions in construction - an architect. share idea.

"You can limit very small errors in the production process of the phone. However, with large designs like buildings, such errors are completely unstable. Anyway, I will stop the door." - This architect adds.

This project provides full-time jobs for about 13,000 construction workers, but also creates a significant pressure on contractors. The first two contractors, Skanska USA and DPR Construction, gave up as soon as the project started - which according to architectural experts is extremely rare for such a large-scale project. The cause of this is still a mystery. Both Apple, as well as all stakeholders, declined to comment on the issue.

Loyal to the design principles

Apple's creativity for this new "Headquarters" is reflected in many aspects. German de la Torre architect, pointed out that many details of this project are "loyal" to Apple's product designs, such as at the curved corners of the building. The elevator button looks quite similar to the "Home" button on the iPhone.

"After years of experimentation, they probably created a design" set of rules ", and Apple products" follow it "," de la Torre said.

Early in the project, Apple's manager told the construction department that the ceiling - made up of carefully polished large concrete panels - should be "spotlessly smooth" from the inside out. And so, thousands of concrete ceiling panels, each sheet, each plate, must undergo thorough inspection and supervision from both Apple and the construction contractor, once at the point of sale and once at construction site.

"Even the invisible parts of the building are very important to Apple."

One of the most controversial issues in the construction process, lies in the doors. Apple wants their doors to be absolutely flat without threshold. Despite all the comments of the construction team, Apple still maintains its views.

"It took us about a month to try to avoid touching this problem, because of the amount of time and effort it takes, especially this has never been done before."

Apple wants their doors to be absolutely flat without threshold.

And so, every time over and over, Apple supervisors spent the whole month watching and completing every single detail, creating a chain effect that made progress on the construction sites. Other were also pushed back.

The installation of signs and instruction signs also needs to be balanced: both to ensure the aesthetics of the minimalist design required by Apple, but also to ensure that in an emergency such as a fire, yes Can help people leave the building as quickly and conveniently as possible.

According to Dirk Mattern, representative of Santa Clara's fire department, he had to be in no fewer than 15 meetings on these signs.

"I've never spent a lot of time with such signs," he said.

Such a picture

When Apple contacted Holder Construction and Rudolph & Stetten to complete the main construction phase in 2015, one of the first issues to be addressed was the door handles for offices and meeting rooms.

After months of work, the final product has been "passed away" by an appraisal committee at Apple. And although according to the construction team, this door handle is "standardized every nanometer" , Apple still requires another product. Even a year and a half later, through so many debates, Apple has yet to gain satisfaction with its door handles.

When the construction is finished completely, perhaps, the only fingerprint match that can be found at the project will belong to Steve Jobs. Because workers often wear gloves to avoid damaging delicate construction materials.

"This is like a picture you never touch," said Brett Davis, regional director of District 16 craft products council. "This is a certain place you must visit, if Apple agrees to let you set foot in their headquarters" - he added.