After disclosing the initial plan of its new facilities in 2013, Google finally opened its bay view garden area to employees. It has been nearly 10 years since the project was established This is the first Google campus designed and built by the company. It definitely doesn't look like the traditional office you're used to. For example, you may notice that the first thing about the new headquarters is its roof, which looks like scales of a dragon from a distance.
This "dragon scale skin" design is actually composed of 90000 silver solar panels, which can generate nearly 7 megawatts of energy, accounting for 40% of the total energy demand of the new office. The nearby wind farm will also provide the energy needed to operate the all electric headquarters. The two kitchens of the headquarters are equipped with electric equipment rather than gas. In addition, the park has automatic curtains that allow a large amount of natural light to enter during the day, and a ventilation system that uses 100% external air.
The new campus has also installed the largest geothermal device in North America, which will help heat and cool the campus without using fossil fuels. It can even reduce cooling water consumption by 90%. The geothermal pile system uses pumps to absorb heat from the ground in winter and send it underground in summer.
Google has only recently begun to transition its employees to a mixed work system, requiring employees to work in its office several times a week. The natural lighting, green plants and wide open space of the Bay scenic area headquarters can help people who have been working from home for the past two years to make the transition easier.