Draper Laboratory | 555 Technology Square | Kendall Square | Cambridge

I really like what they're doing here. Most people love atriums, this will be a huge success for Draper's employees. Same for 100 Federal though on a slightly smaller scale.
 
While I get some of the comments about the slope of the glass and modern architecture....
You need to consider drainage issues. If you did a glass box this side without the angles, you need a method of draining them. Roof drains with crickets would look a bit out of place here.

Properly sloping the structure to allow for inconspicuous locations for drains allows the open concept they are trying to achieve.
 
Nah ... its architecture folks. Drainage can be designed for a flat glass roof ... or a sloped. This is a set of creative decisions that shaped this. Someone wanted a frontispiece that broke away from the rigid geometries of the existing building ... likely to put an energetic mask on a very tired pig.

By the way ... that is not much different than what will show up at 100 Fed.

cca
 
cca said:
Nah ... its architecture folks. Drainage can be designed for a flat glass roof ... or a sloped. This is a set of creative decisions that shaped this. Someone wanted a frontispiece that broke away from the rigid geometries of the existing building ... likely to put an energetic mask on a very tired pig.

By the way ... that is not much different than what will show up at 100 Fed.

cca
Click to expand...

I'll agree partially, and wasn't saying drainage alone would drive this type of design.
But, no. You do not drain a "flat" glass roof of this size. All roofs are sloped and are required to be so. The roof drains and crickets was being purposely facetious.
It is still just another glass glacier sculpture in a long line of them.

Beats the awful, rigidness of the existing hulk that is Draper. Methinks you are attributing more to the thoughtfulness of the design than it really deserves. The idea is great, opening the internals up to a large open space to free the workers from their prison, but the massing is very typical in it's atypicalness.
 
I actually did not make a value judgement to its goodness or badness. Just what I think the designers were trying to accomplish.

I will agree ... nothing is flat. Flat roof is a term we use when we mean "low slope roof".

cca
 
Remember too that Draper is a non-profit. They are relatively flush for a 501(c)(3) to be sure, but there is only so much money to spend on vanity. This isn't original, but I don't think they could/would/need to pay for something groundbreaking.

Hardly anybody is going to see it anyway, tucked away as that side of the building is.
 
I think they are spending a ton of dough on this, but overall love the idea. Still doesn't open this mega-block up at all to pedestrians, but makes it appear much more friendly to the neighborhood.

Even better if it gets rid of the hotel style drop off area that cars always want to run me over at when crossing.
 
Hard to see in that shot, but about 1/3 of the roof is glazed.
 
To each his own, but the irregular slopes just don't do it for me.

It feels like it was sat on by the Jolly Green Giant during construction, and partially collapsed (or the intern was using a really bad CAD program).
 
It's gonna be a killer space inside for anyone who works or visits there. But it is pretty funky from the outside! But, then, I like funky in a building which is why I like so many of the new Cambridge buildings. Lots going on, all sorts of interesting shapes, angles, colors, textures.
 
This is a disaster. In better hands this could have been special. Structure way too heavy.
 
It's fine but...this still begs the unanswered question...

WHY. Was there nothing better that could have been put in that place? More office space? More labspace? Parkspace?
 
Gameguy326 said:
It's fine but...this still begs the unanswered question...

WHY. Was there nothing better that could have been put in that place? More office space? More labspace? Parkspace?
Click to expand...

That question I know the answer to. I'm not sure what you mean by "better." The atrium is going to be what Draper wants/needs it to be. What is better than that?

The U-shaped building is a major headache and productivity waster. Walking end to end and changing floors can take you 5 minutes. The atrium adds catwalks and stairwells connecting distant parts of the building. Along the catwalks there are little alcoves and open areas to get people together outside of conference rooms. Coincident with the atrium addition, all existing office space is being renovated to open floorplan primarily to add capacity (secondarily, just because the interior aesthetic hasn't changed much since 1972).

It also creates an open space big enough for "all hands" meetings. Draper has 1600 employees. You can't stuff them all into a conference room. Draper has been using Kresge Auditorium at MIT for that purpose for years. There will be some way of seating everyone in the atrium (rolling-away bleachers maybe? I don't know the details). Also the cafeteria (the little box in courtyard you can see in the first post of this thread) didn't really have enough seating. It was always mobbed. I think the cafeteria seating is supposed to double.

And finally, the old entrance had about 200 square feet of publicly accessible reception area before security (Draper has very tight security). They had a little display about all their contributions to various space programs (basically every single thing the US has ever put into space) and some other displays on current projects. The new atrium will have a much larger public area before security. This facilitates being more open to the public, but also gives some meeting rooms and such so that they can more easily/spontaneously have non-US-persons visit (particularly from MIT and other Kendall Sq companies).
 
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