Google created two Mountain View, CA campuses to be visually captivating, skyline-transforming, and engineering marvels. Alongside other tech giants in the vicinity, Google is revolutionizing tech and communication and unique architectural structures.
The Bay View buildings are part of the sprawling complex at Google Moffett Field, while Charleston East boasts a singular, grand structure. Each of the four buildings stands out with unparalleled design and structural significance. The roofs of these structures, with heights reaching over 160 feet, consist of 120 distinct, oversized geometric shapes resembling nature’s foliage in their descent. Transparent clerestories are interposed between these cascading canopy layers, ushering in sunlight to illuminate the interiors. From within, the amalgamation of glass and steel gives occupants the sensation of being under a vast, contemporary tent.
The distinctive roofline posed engineering, manufacturing, and construction challenges due to its concave design composed of segmented decking on curved steel trusses. A specialized system was needed to address surface delamination and aim to cut steel costs. The undulating structure beneath required a unique solution for the standing seam roof attachment, provided by Bemo USA Corporation’s proprietary method.
To meet the engineering, performance, and manufacturing challenges, Bemo USA invested in specialized CNC machinery and bespoke software to produce the mass-customized attachment points and metal standing seam panels. The BEMO-Flex system enabled the efficient and accurate production of more than 260,000 unique clip attachment points, providing structural connections. Each one is adjusted in three-dimensional height, pitch, and angle orientation. The BEMO-Flex system connection point was accurate, and 3-D and Total Station scanning provided precise field locations and measurements. Bemo had an entire team of field surveyors who worked for over 18 months on the projects.
Bemo computational design engineers evaluated the individual data points and matched those points up to the desired design surface location. Specialized computer modeling algorithms are used to create the individual BEMO-Flex CAD details. Then, precision components were manufactured and assembled on multi-clip tracks using the modeled data. Each unique track was produced in an assembly-line style manufacturing process. The manufacturing process required over 43.4 million precisely located holes and engraved identifiers.
Google fitted over 90,000 PV panels on the roof, forming a unique dragon-scale solar skin to generate 7 megawatts of electricity. The BEMO Roofing system ensured the roof remained undamaged, using the BEMO-Akkord rail system to attach all PV panels without penetrations. Bemo supplied over 504,747 lf of straight and custom-curved BEMO-Akkord rails, specially designed to attach to BEMO Roof standing seams. The roof’s distinctive convex curve necessitated custom curving for many of these rails.
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