Google’s new headquarters could be the next trend in architecture
Dec 9, 2017, 3:33 PM | Updated: Dec 10, 2017, 9:33 am
(Hayes Davidson photo)
PHOENIX — Experts believe that Google’s new London headquarters unique design could be the next big trend in architecture and say the style is a perfect fit for a city like Phoenix.
According to Business Insider, the style of the building is ideal for growing cities with undeveloped land that want to become the next epicenter for a business or new economic sector.
Nicknamed the “landscraper,” Google’s new building will measure 1,082 feet long but only 11 stories tall. When completed it will be longer than The Shard is tall. The Shard is the tallest building in London and reaches 1,016 feet high.
New technology including cable-less elevators that allow transportation up, down and sideways, was cited as a reason that the new landscrapers could be a success.
The expected growth of drones as delivery devices and increasingly crowded airspace over the next 20 years factors into the improved functionality of landscrapers as apposed to skyscrapers.
Lastly, weather events that have been intensified by climate change can be damaging to skyscrapers especially in high wind scenarios. Tall skyscrapers are prone to swaying in high winds whereas in a landscraper, with a low center of gravity, this is less of a problem.
The Google building in London’s King’s Cross will be 1 million square feet upon completion and construction is expected to begin in 2018.