Inside The $5 Billion Apple Headquarters
[Music]
what looks like a giant spaceship parked
in the lush flats of cupertino
california
is actually tech giant apple's new hq
fittingly named the apple park
this stunning architecture sprawls
across acres of land
and might just be one of the most
stunning campuses in the world
despite its incredibly futuristic looks
the apple park has been a long time in
the making with steve jobs first
announcing the project way back in 2006.
it took eight long years of planning
proposals and permit applications but by
2014
construction was well underway and by
2017
the vast apple workforce was already
starting to move in
the massive ring-shaped building is now
an iconic symbol of the apple brand
and is a fantastic testament to the
company's dedication to effortless
design sustainability and the future of
technology
it was originally estimated that the
campus would cost just half a billion
dollars to put together
however the land alone cost 160 million
dollars and the cost quickly started to
overrun
by 2011 the budget in place had
multiplied to a little under 3 billion
and when it was all said and done apple
were looking at a bill closer to 5.
a 5 billion build is a big sum of money
for any company to justify
any company except apple that is who's
currently worth
two trillion dollars and is estimated to
profit around 60 billion dollars by the
end of this year alone
so where was all that money spent and
what makes the apple park so incredible
for starters the campus is made up of
multiple buildings however 80 percent of
the land is still considered to be green
space
apple and the designers put a lot of
effort into making the park fit
seamlessly into nature
planting over 9 000 drought resistant
trees throughout the grounds
including cherry apricot olive and of
course a few varieties of apple
to encourage workers to maintain a
healthy lifestyle the grounds feature
3.2 kilometers worth of various walking
and running trails as well as 1 000
bikes that can be used to commute
between the buildings
other lifestyle facilities include a gym
wellness center and a couple of
basketball courts
there's also a huge two-story yoga
studio where the desk jockeys can wind
down and
ease out their back pain the campus
really does look after
its staff and the environment too all of
the buildings are incredibly
eco-friendly with the main ring
construction being home to one of the
world's largest rooftop solar farms
the solar covered roof generates up to
17 megawatts of power which is enough to
meet 75 percent of the campuses energy
demand during peak times
the rest of the campus's needs are met
by on-site fuel cells powered by biofuel
or natural gas
the main building also utilizes a
natural ventilation system
meaning that it doesn't use traditional
heating and cooling methods for nine
months of the year
furthering the space's green credentials
nicknamed the spaceship or the ring
the central circular building is quite a
sight to behold
sitting four stories high it has over
1.2 million square feet of office space
and enough room to accommodate up to 12
000 members of staff
to bring the outside world in the design
has incorporated a lot of glass into the
build and the construction even features
the largest
curved glass panes in the world there
are 800 of the 45 foot tall
curved glass panels around the
building's exterior and around 3 000
smaller panels to be found within
the low energy leds natural sunlight and
sheer amount of see-through material
make the spaceship a stunningly bright
place to be
which i'm sure is great at keeping the
some 12 000 staff members
feeling energized throughout their long
working days despite being hidden from
sight
one of the most amazing spaceship
features happens to be found
deep underground the main ring is one of
the few buildings in the u.s and the
world to make use of base
isolation which protects the ring from
even the worst of californian
earthquakes
the isolation system is made up of 692
huge stainless steel plates which allow
the building to shift up to four feet in
any given direction
without causing any structural damage
also to be found underground is an
expansive parking area and road network
that's completely hidden from site
putting these amenities underground was
an absolute necessity in order to
maximize the green space
in and around the apple park other
features to be found around the campus
include seven cafes with the largest
being sprawled across three levels with
enough seating for three thousand people
the huge catering team says it has
enough capacity to feed around fifteen
thousand people
every lunchtime so there's definitely
some growing room if apple decides to
expand its already huge workforce
also within the parks grounds is the
inspiring apple auditorium
formerly known as the steve jobs theatre
the spectacular circular glass building
mirrors the spaceship in its form
and is topped with the world's largest
carbon fiber roof the theater includes a
42 foot high glass elevator that takes
guests underground to the 1000 seat
auditorium
made from chemically tempered glass the
elevator is also considered to be the
tallest freestanding glass elevator in
the world
other buildings dotted around the park
include a one hundred thousand square
foot fitness center
two three hundred thousand square foot
research and development facilities
a care clinic and the visitors center
which happens to be the only building in
the entire park that guests can visit
without a pass
the apple park visitor center is all
under one roof but is divided into four
very special sections
a ten thousand square foot apple store
filled with the latest apple products
a two thousand square foot cafe an
observation deck where you can look over
the campus and a designated
ar experience area the ar area includes
a scale model of the entire apple park
offering visitors an employer's look at
life on campus
the apple park is so full of amazing
features and amenities
more so than almost any other work
environment in the world
apple has thought of everything from
their environmental footprint to keeping
their workforce full up with food
leisure and creativity there have been a
few complaints about the open plan
office spaces with some workers saying
that they are distracting
counterproductive and removes
opportunity for privacy but still
the futuristic facility has been
incredibly well received and has set a
new world standard in how amazing a work
environment can truly be
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