亞馬遜新總部——3個玻璃球組成的植物園

設計 07-02

大多數科技公司都佔據著城郊綠樹成蔭的園區，但亞馬遜是在西雅圖市中心成長起來的，它的大部分創新活力都來自於大城市的地理位置。

這家大型在線零售商的新總部加倍重視其對城市參與的承諾，創造了一個由講堂、廣場和公共開放空間組成的社區，與西雅圖現有的城市肌理無縫連接。

最具標誌性的元素是由三個玻璃球組成的多層植物園，裡面種植著來自五大洲的4萬株高空雲林植物。

Most technology companies occupy leafy campuses on the outskirts of urban areas, but Amazon has grown up in the center of Seattle and drawn much of its innovative energy from its big-city location. The giant online retailer』s new headquarters doubles down on its commitment to urban engagement, creating a neighborhood of buildings, plazas, and public open spaces that connects seamlessly with Seattle』s existing metropolitan fabric. The most iconic element is the trio of glass spheres housing a multi-level botanical garden filled with 40,000 plants taken from high-altitude cloud forests from five continents.

Spheres位於景觀總部內，它就像是一座花園裡的建築。裡面植物約有400種，其中一些在野外滅絕，其他的則相當罕見。為了選擇、培育和管理這些植物，亞馬遜聘請了之前曾在亞特蘭大植物園工作的全職園藝師Ron Gagliardo。

這些植物將會隨著時間的推移而進化，包括一棵名為Rubi的55英尺高的無花果樹，一隻40英尺長的澳大利亞蕨類植物，厄瓜多的蘭花，以及肉食性豬籠草。

Set within the landscaped headquarters, the Spheres are a building in a garden and a garden in a building. The plants represent about 400 species, some of which are extinct in the wild and others are quite rare. To select, nurture, and curate the selection of plants, Amazon hired a full-time horticulturalist, Ron Gagliardo, who had previously worked at the Atlanta Botanical Garden. The collection of plants, which will evolve over time, includes a 55-foot-tall fig tree named Rubi, a 40-foot Australian fern, orchids from Ecuador, and carnivorous pitcher plants.

飛流直下的瀑布和一整面的綠色植物牆創造了叢林的感覺。為了保證所有的植物群都生長良好，球體內的氣候在白天設置為72華氏度和60%的濕度，然後在晚上轉變為55華氏度和90%的濕度。

67,000平方英尺的球體僅占亞馬遜項目的2％，但還是可以吸引人們一起聚集到這裡。對亞馬遜的員工來說，他們提供了一系列會面、工作和用餐的場所——從木質板條的「鳥窩」，到配有長椅和椅子的露台。

Waterfalls and a pair of densely planted living walls create the sense of a jungle. To keep all of this flora happy, the climate in the Spheres is set at 72 degrees Fahrenheit and 60 percent humidity during the day, then shifts to 55 degrees and 90 percent humidity at night. The 67,000-square-foot Spheres represent just two percent of the Amazon project but serve as a magnet to bring people together. Open to Amazon employees, they offer a range of places to meet, work, and dine—from a wood-slatted 「birds nest」 to terraces with banquettes and chairs.

NBBJ architects與Magnusson Klemencic Associates的結構工程師以及NBBJ自己的設計團隊合作，設計了一個由180個加長五角模塊組成的鋼架，靈感來自比利時數學家Eugene Charles Catalan的作品，由五個焊接拱門的點定義。當框架向兩個方向彎曲時，透明低鐵玻璃的窗格是平的。建築底部的一根40萬磅重的環形梁將重力、風和地震力從玻璃和鋼製的外立面轉移到下面樓層的混凝土柱和中心混凝土核心。這些領域將數學與有機、實用與詩意結合起來。

Working with structural engineers at Magnusson Klemencic Associates and NBBJ』s own design computation team, NBBJ architects devised a steel frame made of 180 elongated pentagonal modules inspired by the work of Belgian mathematician Eugene Charles Catalan and defined by the points of five welded arches. While the frame is curved in two directions, the panes of clear, low-iron glass are flat. A 400,000-pound ring beam at the base of the building transfers gravity, wind, and seismic forces from the glass-and-steel facade to concrete columns in the floors below and a central concrete core. The Spheres combine the mathematical and the organic, the pragmatic and the poetic.