The Latest Tour of Apple's Campus 2 Is the Most Impressive Yet
Apple's Campus 2 is continuing to shoot up, even if many of the company's eyes are instead looking to Monday's WWDC keynote. And in a recent tour, some of the $5 billion building's unique characteristics have been shown off, including 3,000 glass panels and concrete that breathes.
Popular Science (via AppleInsider) explains that some 3,000 glass panels are indeed being used in the construction of Campus 2, and the heaviest panes of verticle glass weigh-in at 7,000 pounds. All in all, 1.23 million square feet of glass is involved in the project, which will span 176 acres.
There are a lot of concrete slabs being used in the project, too: some 4,300 in total are needed for the floor and ceiling, and some of the heaviest are 60,000 pounds. These slabs, however, are hollow on the inside, thereby allowing the building to “breathe” and be more eco-friendly. On that front, the campus itself will generate 75 percent of its own power consumption during peak times, with 16 megawatts of power expected to come from rooftop solar panels. Popular Science adds:
The campus will also place a big emphasis on cultivating natural surroundings: Eighty percent of the campus will be designated green space and include indigenous trees. With its second campus, Apple wants its employees to feel like they’re outside even when they’re not. Apple promises that no deforestation occurred while making their massive home base. Most of the area was already comprised of man-made structures.
Once completed, Campus 2 is going to have four stories above-ground, and three stories below. There'll be seven cafes, a fitness center, and a 120,000 square-foot auditorium for press events. The building is expected to near completion at the end of 2016, and Apple employees are going to be moving in around early 2017.
As Popular Science adds, “Apple's Spaceship is closer than ever to its launch.” We'll keep you posted with further information as we receive it.
