Eighteen months ago, I sent out the initial renderings of Apple’s new campus. Now you get an insider’s view. “Apple Campus 2,” as it is called, looks like a spaceship that has landed and the price tag is out of this world as well. Five billion dollars. This was Steve Job’s last big project he worked on before his passing. Today the site is 80% asphalt. When completed, the site will be 80% open space and park.
–There is not a straight piece of glass in the building (one of the reasons why the $3 billion budget is now over $5 billion)
–172 acres of land
–They will demolish 2.6 million SF of office and add 3.2 million SF
–When completed, 12,000 workers will house here which means that they will have a pretty normal density of one employee per every 266 SF
There are a number of renderings below AND additional highlighted text below the renderings.
On a side note (with more information at the bottom of this narrative), Apple is moving a group to Mesa, AZ. Seven hundred workers will be housed there. Seems like small potatoes but we are excited to have anything from a world class company like Apple and hope they grow like weeds. In a news announcement that came out three weeks ago, it looks like their next move will be making sapphire iPhone displays. Rock on Apple.
I hope you have enjoyed the last five weeks. If so, you can like our Facebook page here. Follow us on Twitter here or join our Google+ community here. More exciting and informational narratives arriving next week.
Thanks for reading,
Craig
602.954.3762
ccoppola@leearizona.com
Apple Spaceship Campus:
25 Photos of the New Campus Planned for Cupertino
By: Dave Smith
October 13, 2013
One of the first renderings of the new Apple spaceship campus, which was unveiled by the Cupertino City Council in late 2011. The Apple spaceship campus should be completed by 2015 or 2016. Courtesy / Apple
Update (Oct. 16, 2013 – 2:10 p.m.): The Cupertino City Council has unanimously approved “Apple Campus 2.” Barring any last minute petitions, Apple’s building permits will go into effect on Nov. 20.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) on Thursday revealed a scale model of its planned “spaceship” campus, which, if approved by the Cupertino, Calif., City Council on Tuesday, is slated for completion in either 2015 or 2016.
“The concept of the building is collaboration and fluidity,” Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer told the San Jose Mercury News in an exclusive interview, echoing sentiments from Apple executives Sir Jony Ive and Craig Federighi from their interview late last month. “It’ll provide a very open-spaced system, so that at one point in the day you may be in offices on one side of the circle and find yourself on the other side later in the day.”
For its new spaceship campus, which the company calls “Apple Campus 2,” Apple essentially plans to flip its current 175-acre site, which Oppenheimer calls a “sea of asphalt” as the former Hewlett Packard campus is composed of 80 percent asphalt, transform it into 80 percent open space and parkland, and drop a giant ring of polished glass right in the middle of it.
Renderings and drawings of the new Apple spaceship campus first appeared in late 2011, describing a “distinctive and inspiring 21st century workplace” that consisted of 2.8 million square feet over four stories to accommodate up to 13,000 Apple employees, with a mostly subterranean parking lot to help preserve the beauty of the site’s natural surroundings.
Prior to his death in October 2011, Apple founder Steve Jobs had a chance to present the new Spaceship campus “2” to the Cupertino City Council. The renderings and full-scale model were built by renowned architect Sir Norman Foster and his team at Foster + Partners.
“It’s a pretty amazing building,” Jobs said. “It’s a little like a spaceship landed. It’s got this gorgeous courtyard in the middle. It’s a circle. It’s curved all the way around. If you build things, this is not the cheapest way to build something. There is not a straight piece of glass in this building. It’s all curved. We’ve used our experience making retail buildings all over the world now, and we know how to make the biggest pieces of glass in the world for architectural use. And, we want to make the glass specifically for this building here. We can make it curve all the way around the building. … It’s pretty cool.”
Oppenheimer was present at a two hours-plus meeting with the Cupertino City Council — we’ve embedded the full video at the bottom of the page — but there’s no better way to understand how the new Apple spaceship campus will work than to see it in action. Thanks to Apple and the San Jose Mercury News, we’ve accumulated a set of 25 photos and renderings of the Apple spaceship campus. Enjoy.
Another early rendering of the Apple spaceship campus, which is slated for completion in either 2015 or 2016. Courtesy / Apple
The full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
A close-up of the full scale model for the new Apple spaceship campus shows tables, chairs, and plenty of space. The roof is also adorned with black solar panels. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
Apple’s proposed new spaceship campus shows a road leading to an underground parking space, which would help preserve the area’s natural beauty. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
Late Apple founder Steve Jobs said the new Apple spaceship campus would not include a single straight piece of glass. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
A look inside the full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
The full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus included a parking structure, which is mostly underground, with moss growing on the sides and solar panels on the roof. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
A look inside the full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
Apple’s Chief Financial Officer Peter Oppenheimer, left, and Dan Whisenhunt, Senior Director of Real Estate and Facilities at Apple. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
A close-up of the wellness and fitness center proposed for the new Apple spaceship campus, which is slated for completion in 2015 or 2016. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
A close-up of the full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus shows how the parking lot would be mostly subterranean. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
A close-up of the full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus shows a new theatre for meetings and presentations. Apple has only held a handful of product presentations at its Cupertino headquarters. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
The full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
The full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus shows how parts of the underground parking structures would overlook Interstate 280 in California. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
This close-up of the full scale model of the new spaceship campus proposed by Apple shows the road leading into the subterranean parking structure. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
For its new spaceship campus, Apple plans to install trees and greenery into the center of the all-glass ring for better air flow. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
The full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus also shows a few different buildings on the perimeter of the campus designated for research and development. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer, left, and Dan Whisenhunt, the senior director of real estate and facilities at Apple, reveal the full scale model of the new spaceship campus for Apple, slated for completion in 2015 or 2016. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
The full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus shows off the all-glass enclosure. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
Another look inside the full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
The full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus shows off a new transit center. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
The full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus shows off four floors and 2.8 million square feet of space, with a roof adorned with solar panels. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
Another look at the parking structure planned for the new spaceship campus at Apple in Cupertino, Calif. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
The full scale model of the new Apple spaceship campus. Courtesy / Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group
Apple this weekend also updated its project plan for its new spaceship campus, which includes solar roofing to help power the building. We’ve included the new proposal directly below the video of Oppenheimer’s presentation at the Cupertino City Council.
PROPOSED PROJECT The proposed project is the redevelopment of the approximately 176-acre project site into a new campus for Apple, Inc. (Apple). Apple is a corporation, established in Cupertino in 1976, that designs and markets consumer electronics, consumer software, and personal computers.
The project site currently comprises buildings with office and research and development uses1 which would be replaced as part of the proposed project. The campus would be self-contained and would include office, research and development space, parking, employee amenities, and a central utility plant. In addition, a segment of Pruneridge Avenue would be vacated by the City to allow for the development of a unified and secure campus. The Glendenning Barn, currently located north of Pruneridge Avenue, would be relocated to an on- or off-site location. As part of the project, Apple would also undertake changes to local roadways in the vicinity of the site. The project designer is the architectural and planning firm Foster + Partners, headed by Norman Foster. The landscape designer is OLIN, a landscape architecture and planning firm, headed by Laurie Olin.
The project would result in the demolition of all structures within the project site (consisting of approximately 2,657,000 square feet of building space) and the ultimate construction of 3,420,000 square feet of office, research, and development uses; 245,000 square feet of auditorium, fitness center, and Valet Parking Reception uses; 92,000 square feet of utility plants; and parking and ancillary buildings (such as security receptions and landscape maintenance buildings). Proposed buildings are designed to be energy efficient and to use renewable energy, much of which would be produced on-site (via photovoltaic infrastructure and fuel cells). Please refer to Chapter III, Project Description, for additional detail.
Apple’s ‘Spaceship’ Campus Budget Balloons from $3 Billion to $5 Billion
Portraying Apple’s new corporate campus as an “investor relations nightmare,” a new report reveals that the project’s budget has increased by $2 billion, causing it to become a year behind schedule as the architect looks to cut costs.
By: Neil Hughes
April 04, 2013
Citing five people close to the project, Bloomberg reported on Thursday that the cost of Apple’s so-called “spaceship” circular campus could now exceed the $3.9 billion cost of New York City’s new World Trade Center complex. The increase in costs has reportedly led to a delay in the project, as architect Foster + Partners seeks to cut $1 billion from the budget.
Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook already revealed in February that his company plans to move to its new “Campus 2” by 2016. That’s a year later than the company had originally projected.
Late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs had a hands-on role in designing the facility. He personally revealed the project at a Cupertino City Council meeting in June 2011, just months before his death, where he noted that the project would be costly due in part to its use of curved glass.
“There’s not a straight piece of glass in this building,” Jobs said. “We’ve used our experience in building retail buildings all over the world. We know how to make the biggest pieces of glass for architectural use.”
With the project now apparently over budget, Bloomberg questioned how investors would react to the cost of the project. At the end of its last quarter, Apple had $137 billion in cash reserves.
“Investors didn’t squawk much when Apple was dominating the smartphone and tablet market, but shares have fallen 38 percent since September amid rising competition from Samsung Electronics and concerns about Apple’s product pipeline,” author Peter Burrows wrote, adding that critics would ask whether “curved glass is the best use of funds.”
Most of the cost of the project lies in materials and “fit and finish.” Under the plans overseen by Jobs, there will be “no seam, gap, or paintbrush stroke showing; every wall, floor and ceiling is to be polished to a supernatural smoothness,” the report said. Even the interior wood must “heartwood” from the center of trees from a specific series of maple.
The report speculated that some of the $1 billion in cuts that have been made to the project will come from some of those “fit and finish” aspects pushed for by Jobs. For example, the former CEO originally wanted polished concrete ceilings that will be cast in molds on the floor and lifted into place.
Apple’s new corporate headquarters will be located about a mile east of its current location in Cupertino, Calif. The company plans to migrate about 12,000 workers to the site, but also plans to retain its existing office space at 1 Infinite Loop.
The circular four-story main facility will be one of the largest buildings in the world at 2.8 million square feet. The project earned its “spaceship” moniker from Jobs himself, who said at the Cupertino City Council meeting that the project would look like one had landed in the city.
Apple’s Mesa Facility to Create 2,000 Jobs
By: Mike Sunnucks and Kristena Hansen
November 6, 2013
Apple Inc. confirmed today that is locating a domestic manufacturing plant in Mesa at the former First Solar facility.
Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer and the Arizona Commerce Authority announced the site selection today. The site selection is a huge coup for Brewer, the ACA and the East Valley.
Apple will bring in 700 permanent jobs and create another 1,300 construction jobs to finish the build-out of the empty First Solar plant. Construction costs were not immediately available.
Apple officials also issued a statement noting they are partnering with the Salt River Project to power the plant with solar and renewable sources.
“We are proud to expand our domestic manufacturing initiative with a new facility in Arizona, creating more than 2,000 jobs in engineering, manufacturing and construction,” the Apple statement reads. “This new plant will make components for Apple products and it will run on 100 percent renewable energy from day one, as a result of the work we are doing with SRP to create green energy sources to power the facility.”
The plant will be located at the Eastmark development. That is Scottsdale-based DMB Associates redevelopment of the former GM Proving Ground in the East Valley.
“We’re obviously excited that Apple has chosen Mesa to have a manufacturing facility,” Mesa Mayor Scott Smith said. “This has been a great win for Arizona, the region and Mesa.”
Smith said there were no city incentives for Apple to locate in Mesa.
Greater Phoenix Economic Council President and CEO Barry Broome said the Apple plant will help the Valley attract other technology companies.
“Apple’s presence in the region will be a game-changer for the Greater Phoenix’s area, its innovation landscape and future ability to attract other high-tech companies,” Broome said.
The announcement also is a huge win for DMB’s Eastmark. The Mesa development has been stymied by the recession, a stalled resort and the First Solar plant that never was put into production despite incentive help.
Rumor: Apple could produce 100-200M sapphire iPhone displays with new equipment
By: Mikey Campbell
February 06, 2014
A report on Thursday claims Apple partner GT Advanced has taken receipt of sapphire manufacturing and testing equipment at its plant in Arizona, with the new machines estimated to output between some 100 and 200 million 5-inch iPhone displays per year.
GT Advanced Technologies’ ASF sapphire furnace.
Source: GT Advanced
In a supposed effort to get a sapphire facility up and running in Mesa, Arizona, Apple and manufacturing partner GT Advanced Technologies are assembling machinery that will reportedly be used for bulk sapphire production. Among the machines said to be on-site are furnaces and advanced testing equipment.
While the source of the information has not been fully disclosed — listed only as “import/export records” — analyst Matt Margolis (via 9to5Mac) claims GT has taken receipt of 518 fully assembled furnaces that he estimates can churn out enough sapphire for between 103 million and 116 million 5-inch iPhone displays. An additional 420 machines wait unassembled and could boost yearly production numbers to about 200 million units.
According to GT, “ASF” sapphire furnaces produce high-quality, large-area substrates for demanding applications like high brightness LEDs, consumer electronics and industrial applications.
As for the sapphire inspection tools, GT is using a piece of hardware from Intego called the SIRIUS Slab. The automated system will increase the yield of high quality sapphire in a repeatable manner, says a GT Advanced press release detailing the Intego partnership. In the document from March 2013, GT’s president and CEO Tom Gutierrez said the implementation would offer lower costs and increased sapphire production for mobile device industries.
“Automating the sapphire material inspection process will deliver more repeatable and consistent results that drive greater throughput,” Gutierrez said. “This will help to lower the cost of sapphire for high volume applications such as cover material for mobile and touch screen devices.”
Intego’s SIRIUS Slab sapphire inspection tool. Source: Intego
Apple inked a $578 million deal with GT Advanced in November 2013 for the supply of sapphire materials, though the specifics of the multi-year contract are largely unknown. The money is said to be a prepayment for the build of the Mesa, Arizona sapphire plane, GT Advanced will reimburse in full starting from 2015.
Arizona Governor Jan Brewer offered a bit more clarity as to the size of the Apple-GT Advanced plant, saying in November that the facility will create some 700 new jobs in the first year alone, not counting the 1,300 construction jobs for building out the area.
In an interview with ABC News in January, Apple CEO Tim Cook confirmed the Mesa, Arizona facility is a sapphire glass plant, but declined to reveal how the material would be used.
Apple holds a number of patents regarding the production and use of sapphire in products like the iPhone, including a recently-discovered property for a sapphire iPhone display. The company first experimented with sapphire on the iPhone 5’s rear camera cover glass and expanded the material’s role as a protective cover for the new Touch ID fingerprint sensor.
It was reported in late January that Apple was looking to ramp production of “critical” sapphire subcomponent by the end of February, which will then be exported for outside of the U.S. for assembly. The part will supposedly be “new,” suggesting either a replacement for existing hardware, like an iPhone display, or something completely novel.
