San Francisco: Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM), the interiors of Samsung Research America’s new campus in Mountain View, California, was awarded LEED® Gold certification. Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), LEED, or Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design, is an internationally recognized mark of excellence that provides building owners and operators with a framework for identifying and implementing practical and measurable green building design, construction, operations, and maintenance solutions.
Encompassing two buildings totaling 380,000 square feet, the design of the interiors emphasized openness by creating communal spaces that foster informal collaboration and respite, bringing natural light into the labs, and providing all employees with views of the Diablo Range and Santa Cruz Mountains. With a program that included a variety of office spaces, meeting rooms, a cafeteria, a fitness center, and other shared amenities, a planning module was developed to embed adaptability into the fabric of the building. This “super grid” allows flexibility of working styles and easy reorganization to support future growth. The design team worked closely with 20 separate departments to express their individuality through design, color, and sustainable material choices. LED lighting and under-floor air distribution were used throughout the project. This certification complements existing successes for this campus including the MVgo shuttle service provided by the developer TMG.
As the most widely recognized and widely used green building program across the globe, LEED is transforming buildings, homes, and communities in all 50 states and more than 150 countries and territories worldwide. LEED guides the design, construction, operations, and maintenance of more than 69,000 projects worldwide, comprising 12.4 billion square feet of commercial and institutional construction space, and more than 181,000 additional residential units.
About Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) is one of the leading architecture, interior design, engineering, and urban planning firms in the world, with an almost 80-year reputation for design excellence and a portfolio that includes some of the most important architectural accomplishments of the 20th and 21st centuries. Since its inception, SOM has been a leader in the research and development of specialized technologies, new processes and innovative ideas, many of which have had a palpable and lasting impact on the design profession and the physical environment. The firm’s longstanding leadership in design and building technology has been honored with more than 1,700 awards for quality, innovation, and management. The American Institute of Architects has recognized SOM twice with its highest honor, the Architecture Firm Award—in 1962 and again in 1996. The firm maintains offices in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., London, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Mumbai, and Abu Dhabi.