Having scrapped the old design for being too ‘boring’ Google have employed Heatherwick Studio to design a work/play office that will be longer than the Shard is tall
Yesterday Google unveiled the updated plans for their King’s Cross Campus to Camden Council.
Having been redeveloped as the ‘Knowledge Quarter’ King’s Cross makes the perfect setting for the internet technology company that wants to ‘own the knowledge’.
Roly Keating, Chair of the Knowledge Quarter said: “Google have supported the Knowledge Quarter vision from the beginning.
“The arrival of thousands of Googlers mixing with scientists, archivists, academics and students will accelerate the incredible breadth of innovation taking place in this unique part of London.”
Google are known for creating out-of-this-world offices for their staff to enjoy, and the King’s Cross campus is set to be no different.
Having rejected the original plans for a £1 billion office from AHMM, CEO Larry Page commissioned Heatherwick Studio to come up with a new plan.
It’s a chance for the design studio to redeem themselves after their plans for the now infamous Garden Bridge were scrapped.
Dubbed a ‘groundscaper’, the 11 storey building will be longer than the Shard if you laid it sideways.
The finished building will cover an expanse of 1,000,000 sq ft, running parallel to the platforms of King’s Cross Station.
Joe Borrett, Google’s director of real estate and construction, said: “We are excited to be able to bring our London Googlers together in one campus, with a new purpose-built building that we’ve developed from the ground up.
“Our offices and facilities play a key part in shaping the Google culture, which is one of the reasons we are known for being amongst the best places to work in the industry.”
The new building will be the first wholly Google designed and owned building outside of the United States.
The tech giant is clearly hoping its employees will play hard in order to work harder, and the plans are filled with the sort of facilities that would make the average gym membership pale in comparison.
The all-star fitness suite is set to include basketball courts, a swimming pool that’s half the size of an Olympic one, and a running trail around the roof nicknamed the “trim track”.
Employees will also be able to wander through fields of gooseberries, strawberries and sage on the roof gardens.
Clearly the Silicon Valley titan is planning to bring some of that California wellness ethos with it to London’s less than sunny climes.
With such great facilities on site it will be a wonder if any of the staff actually leave the office, which is probably what the company is hoping for.
Google already has an office in the area at 6 St Pancras, and together with a third building the Google empire in King’s Cross will be home to 7,000 employees.
Thomas Heatherwick, founder of Heatherwick Studio, said: “As my home and the home of my studio for more than 15 years, I have a close relationship with King’s Cross.
“The area is a fascinating collision of diverse building types and spaces and I can’t help but love this mix of massive railway stations, roads, canals and other infrastructure all layered up into the most connected point in London.”
If the plans are approved construction will go ahead in 2018.
Google have not disclosed an estimated cost for the project.
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