Page 28 - Climate Control News Magazine

Indoor Air Quality
An office structure that is out of this world
AFTER CONSULTING THE EXPERTS THAT DEVELOPED AIRFLOW TECHNOLOGY FOR FORMULA ONE RACE CARS, APPLE ENGINEERS SELECTED A UNIQUE VENTILATION SYSTEM FOR ITS NEW CAMPUS IN CALIFORNIA WHICH LOOKS LIKE A GIANT SPACESHIP.
WORTH A STAGGERING $234.7bn, the com- pany,whichisnowoneofthebiggestontheplan- et, was able to move its massive workforce into the futuristic structure last year.
Designed by Norman Foster, the new office space is set on 175 acres — its is even bigger than The Pentagon.
The office relies on natural ventilation using flaps and sensors to circulate air and measure where from and how much the wind is blowing.
This is in addition to tubes of water which have been placed within the concrete floors and ceilings to help keep the temperature in a com- fortable middle ground. All of this is done to prevent the central heating and cooling system from kicking in, which is only reserved for the most extreme temperatures.
Between each floor of the building is a cano- py that juts out, mainly to protect employees from the intense California sun. Tucked within each canopy is a ventilation system that fun- nels air in and out of the building. Apparently the late Steve Jobs, who was not a fan of air con- ditioning, wanted his employees to feel any
passing breeze as if they were sitting outside. Through a variety of sen- sors, the building can maintain a temperature of 68 to 77 degrees Fahren- heit, all by using an intake and release of natural air.
At the centre of the build was HVAC geared to- ward natural heating, ventilation, and air con- trol. To achieve this, air is allowed to flow freely between the inside and outside of the building, which can help assist for nine months of the en- tire year — highlighting the importance of such features in the DNA of design.
The glass exterior succeeds in blurring the lines between office and nature. To achieve this, Apple hired the German firm Seele Group (the same company that outfitted the famous all-glass exterior of Apple's Fifth Avenue loca- tion in New York City). The company produced roughly 800 glass panels that are 45 feet tall, ex- tremely durable, and curved to fit the contours of the ring-like structure.
Even inside the building staff can smell the
fruit bearing trees outside.
This means there is ample natural light. The campus also features a cluster of various trees, many of them fruit-bearing. The foliage is not merely for aesthetics; they are drought- tolerant varieties, planted to withstand cli- mate change.
To make the building super-energy-effi- cient, the entire roof is crafted out of solar panels. It is one of the largest solar roofs on the planet. Another four megawatts are powered through the use of biofuel and natural gas within the complex.
Eighty percent of the campus is open space. Walk around inside the building, and visitors can smell the trees outside–9,000 of them, plant- ed in areas that were once paved over. ✺
The futuristic, ring like structure is even bigger than The Pentagon.
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