Designers
Hello everyone!
When passing by the Apple Store
I can always feel a sense of luxury
Where does this sense of high quality come from?
Mainly related to its glass facade
Jobs thinks
Apple Store can help companies build brands
The existence of a store is not only for selling products
Also, show customers the advantages of Apple products
This is why the Apple Store chose the glass facade
Open the vision with huge floor-to-ceiling glass
Create brand trust
It feels “transparent” and you can see the inside clearly at a glance
From building structure to edging
Those glasses that stand upright, one side to the bottom
Each seam is carefully designed and made by the designer
Whose hands do these come from?
They are designed by an engineering company headquartered in London
Eckersley O’Callaghan did it
Eckersley O’Callaghan
Is a team of structural and exterior wall engineers
Engaged in various construction projects
From traditional wood, steel to a concrete structure
There are projects involved in the facade and customized glass structure
In the past ten years, Eckersley O’Callaghan is, even more, Apple makes glass facade structures in flagship stores in various cities From flat to a curved surface, constantly innovating
# Flat glass #
Let’s talk about the flat glass curtain wall first Apple’s white glass replaces the traditional wall structure At the same time, in order to reduce the visual burden Create a light, borderless space effect Will minimize the use of glass blocks The refurbished flagship store in New York illustrates this well.
Comparison before and after the renovation of Apple’s flagship store on Fifth Avenue in New York
This Apple Store in Milan’s Liberty Square
The 8-meter-high “water curtain entrance” design is also very bright
This oblate cube resembles the Apple Store on Fifth Avenue in New York
But there are cascading fountains on both sides of the glass curtain
Makes people feel like traveling in the water
Take the Hangzhou store as an example
In order to look simpler, the indoor height is set to 15 meters
And there are no pillars on the ground
The facade has only 11 glass panels about 3 meters wide
From the ground to the ceiling, there is no space in between
Such a design does not matter whether it is a requirement for installation or craftsmanship
Are very strict and precise
Eckersley O’Callaghan
Fix the glass on the top support structure
The main body is very cleverly designed and has the function of windproof and shockproof
Simple force diagram
The reason for choosing 11 glasses
Instead of 9 or 12
Is to ensure Apple’s logo
Can be placed on a complete piece of glass in the center
Apple flagship store in Istanbul, Turkey
Use 4 blocks 10 meters wide
3 meters high glass surrounds the skylight
On the top is a carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CRFP) panel with an Apple logo
This design not only allows natural light to enter the underground shop
Also serves as a visual signpost for the store
(CRFP) The panel is designed into a “pre-curved” shape
Will not accumulate water
Apple flagship store in Yas Mall, Abu Dhabi
I also chose the giant glass wall design
# Clip stone glass #
Of course, except for the transparent white glass Eckersley O’Callaghan Through cooperation with a glass manufacturer, Glas Trösch Developed a new material They install the stone layer as a sandwich in the glass After careful modeling (FEM) and experimental testing Finally make a sample
In the design of the Apple Macau store
Just use this material
When the light hits the wall
Will create the illusion of light penetrating the stone wall
Improve the visual transparency of the building
# Curved glass #
With continuous breakthroughs in technology
Eckersley O’Callaghan
Then I started thinking about applying curved glass to it
The entrance of the Apple flagship store in Pudong, Shanghai
Installed a cylindrical glass tower
Revolutionary redefinition of the Apple Store
The original square glass facade
13m high curved tempered laminated glass plate made into one body
The curved glass is designed as a “skeleton”
The gravitational load is dispersed from this skeleton to the surroundings
The connected steel fittings are also carefully designed
Apple Store in Ningbo
The facade design uses concave glass panels
The storefront is curved to match the contours of the surrounding buildings
This is also the first company to use 12.5 meters high
Apple store with concave insulated glass facade
Glass panels use cold-formed lamination technology
The extent of the rebound effect of the cold-formed glass is unknown
Therefore, the design team at the beginning of the design
I did a lot of data analysis and modeling to test the performance of the glass
The interface between the top of the facade and the reinforced concrete beam
At the same time, the designer also strengthened the fixed structure
With laminated accessories
For better connection to curved glass
Apple flagship store in Dubai Mall
Eckersley O’Callaghan
Provided 11-meter-high structural glass and facade engineering services
The structure is a two-story building
56.6 meters long curved façade
With a 5.5-meter wide terrace
11-meter-high curved south-facing glass curtain wall
Composed of 18 electric “solar wing” glass windows
Analysis and modeling show that
The existence of these “solar wings”
Designed to better deal with the extreme environment of Dubai
Especially in winter
Since the sun is lower on the horizon
Maximum solar gain
Double-layer glass with high-performance thermal coating
Used in conjunction with sunshade blinds
As part of an energy management strategy
Facade global model
Front side connection
Let’s take a look at Apple’s new headquarters
The same revolutionary glass structure design
The entrance is made of a glass wall with a diameter of 41m
Supports a carbon fiber roof
The scale is more than the sum of the past 5 stores
The glass consists of four 12mm thick plies
Without any additional frames
The building is the largest structure in the world supported only by glass
Since Cupertino is located in a high seismic zone
Taking into account the characteristics of glass
Structural standards are particularly challenging
The designer used a variety of strategies to simulate seismic activity
The final decision will be the curved glass panel
Fixed in the steel trough base with structural silica gel
In order to transmit seismic energy, the steel plate has been carefully designed
Can deform before the glass breaks
Thereby protecting the integrity and robustness of the overall structure
Building carbon fiber roof
Is composed of 44 radial plates
The diameter is 60m, the height is 7m, and the weight is 80 tons
These boards are made in the factory and then assembled on site
The design of the structural system is the roof
Required ducts, sprinklers, audio and safety systems
Contained in the 30 mm seam between the glass plates
Schematic diagram of parametric roof
Through different structural forms
Finally optimized the lightest version
Roof installation process
# Spherical facade #
Apple Sands store in Singapore
The design is more clever
It is the first Apple store directly on the water
Also Eckersley O’Callaghan
The most iconic structure and facade engineering
The design is the first all-glass dome structure
Overall height 17m width 30m
Consists of 114 glass plates and 10 for
Structurally connected vertical mullions
The largest glass panel size is 10m wide x 3m high
Seams between insulating glass panels
Are also perfectly hidden in a structured place
Thereby increasing the overall transparency of the building
Round dome glass panel located in the top center
In the event of a fire
Adjacent glass panels will rise and open
To release smoke in the building
Which also includes lighting and sprinkler system
# Glass stairs #
The glass staircase is also an iconic presence of the Apple Store Of course this is also done by Eckersley O’Callaghan Completed installation
In 2002, Green Street, Soho District, Manhattan, New York
The old post office has been renovated
Become the first Apple flagship store in the world
The glass staircase at that time was
Designed by Steve Jobs himself
And registered a patent for glass stairs in 2007
The refurbished Apple Store in Manhattan, New York
Redesigned based on the original glass staircase
The glass stringer is formed in the form of 13 meters long
The armrest is made as a single whole without splicing
The stairs can bear more than two tons of weight
Stairs like the facade
Also changed from a right angle to a spiral staircase
In order to prevent it from being run out
The treads of the stairs are also made into a matte effect
The elongated spiral staircase in the Apple flagship store in Tokyo, Japan
At the beginning of the design, the designer considered in detail
The structure under personal use and crowd load
And made a model in the Dutch manufacturer’s workshop
After various tests
The stairs were disassembled and transported to the site to be reassembled
Eckersley O’Callaghan
Also, cooperate with Foster + Partners
Designed a 12.8m high glass elevator in Apple’s new headquarters
This is the highest free-standing glass elevator in the world
It is also the first elevator to rotate on spiral guide rails
This interesting glass sculpture is called “Vidre-Slide”
It’s Eckersley O’Callaghan
With glass maker Cricursa
A technology for bending glass developed in cooperation
The glass sculpture consists of a 4-meter-high triangular glass structure
And a 9-meter-long slide
Using the latest innovative technology
Use tightly curved glass and a small amount of adhesive to bond
Can maximize transparency
The one-piece design does not require mechanical connection and fixation
Two long glass elements support each other
The bottom is tied together by a steel structure
Ensure the overall stability of the structure
The slide part consists of a 450 mm radius
Half-cylinder made of annealed glass
The glass pedal is glued to the curved glass surface using TSSA
There are almost no glue marks on this adhesive
And has a strong bonding effect
Able to withstand heavier weight
The emergence of Vidre-Slide not only reflects
Perfect collaboration between engineers and manufacturers
Also successfully tested the application of emerging glass technology in practice
