Akamai is the largest distributed platform operating at the edge of the Internet. On Nov. 1, it held a grand opening ceremony for the opening of its 19-story, 480,000-sf headquarters in Cambridge, Mass., which brings employees from six properties under one roof.
Those 19 floors are connected by the Akamile, a mile-long uninterrupted path that extends from the building’s street lobby to its highest floor. Sasaki was the interior designer of this building, and its vision for Akamile was to provide areas for socialization (from high-tech conference rooms to game stations), business, and seclusion, each of which is clearly denoted with colors and furniture specific to the workspace.
The goal of the space is to get employees to want to be in the office, as opposed to working remotely. “To connect the world, we must first connect to each other” was Sasaki’s mission statement for Akamai’s headquarters.
Greeters meet visitors coming into Akamai's two-story lobby.
To provide a personalized, welcoming experience, the building’s two-story lobby dispenses with a concierge desk in favor of greeters. The first three stories of the building are in “Akamai orange,” the top three in “Akamai blue,” and the rest in different color schemes that provide wayfinding for visitors as they step from the elevators. The color scheme is also meant as a directional signal to collaborative work areas.
(The color is bright in the Akamile, and subdued in workspaces. Brightness denotes when workers are in collaborative versus individual spaces.)
Sasaki developed a parametric interior design for Akamile, to generate an interconnected line pattern throughout the building. These color lines increase in spaces where connectivity and communal work are frequent.
Akamile is also used for programming. The Commons, on the third floor, includes an IT help desk, coffee bar, mail room, and supply room. Floor eight offers ping pong and pool tables, and the stairs double as shared seating. There are also moveable stairs that allow the floor space to be reconfigured.
The Building Team on this project included Boston Properties (developer and owner), Pickard Chilton (exterior design architect), Stantec (exterior AOR), and Turner Construction (interior CM). The interior construction exceeded $100 million, and Akamai has taken a 15-year lease.
At 19 stories, the headquarters is the tallest office building in Cambridge’s Kendall Square. The building includes Akamai’s new Network Operations Command Center, Broadcasting Operations Control Center, and Security Operations Center, where DDoS attacks are detected and mitigated.
The interior buildout of the 19-story headquarters cost more than $100 million. The building was designed to achieve WELL and LEED Gold certifications.
Akamai’s headquarters is shooting for WELL certification by next summer. All foods sold in the building will include at least 50% fruit or vegetable options. At least half of the food has grain flour as their primary ingredient. Nonpackaged foods will list their ingredients.
Over 70% of the building’s workstations are within 20 feet of a window. There are electronic sit-to-stand desks, and the interior is monitored for thermal comfort. Private spaces use fabric screens to absorb sound, and all spaces are designed to limit reverberations and provide proper sound levels relative to acoustics.
The building’s operations are designed to be water- and energy-efficient: A rooftop solar panel array provides more than 82,000 kWh per year of electricity. The building’s HVAC system features active chill beans (made in Massachusetts) that are expected to be at least 30% more efficient. The building will receive LEED v4 Gold core and shell certification.
Related Stories
Seismic Design | Feb 27, 2023
Turkey earthquakes provide lessons for California
Two recent deadly earthquakes in Turkey and Syria offer lessons regarding construction practices and codes for California. Lax building standards were blamed for much of the devastation, including well over 35,000 dead and countless building collapses.
Sports and Recreational Facilities | Feb 27, 2023
New 20,000-seat soccer stadium will anchor neighborhood development in Indianapolis
A new 20,000-seat soccer stadium for United Soccer League’s Indy Eleven will be the centerpiece of a major neighborhood development in Indianapolis. The development will transform the southwest quadrant of downtown Indianapolis by adding more than 600 apartments, 205,000 sf of office space, 197,000 sf for retail space and restaurants, parking garages, a hotel, and public plazas with green space.
Retail Centers | Feb 24, 2023
Santiago Calatrava unveils plans for a luxury retail and office complex in Düsseldorf, Germany
Renowned architect and engineer Santiago Calatrava, along with the CENTRUM Group, has unveiled plans for Calatrava Boulevard, a luxury retail and office complex in Düsseldorf, Germany. Running parallel to Königsallee and connecting with the Steinstrasse station, Calatrava Boulevard will incorporate and connect to the boulevard’s existing buildings.
Reconstruction & Renovation | Feb 16, 2023
Insights from over 300 potential office-to-residential conversions
Research from Gensler finds that, surprisingly, the features that result in an unpleasant office often make for a superlative multifamily product.
High-rise Construction | Feb 15, 2023
Bjarke Ingels' 'leaning towers' concept wins Qianhai Prisma Towers design competition
A pair of sloped high-rises—a 300-meter residential tower and a 250-meter office tower—highlight the Qianhai Prisma Towers development in Qianhai, Shenzhen, China. BIG recently won the design competition for the project.
Office Buildings | Feb 12, 2023
Smyrna Ready Mix’s new office HQ mimics the patterns in the company’s onsite stone quarry
Designed by EOA Architects to showcase various concrete processes and applications, Smyrna Ready Mix's new office headquarters features vertical layering that mimics the patterns in the company’s stone quarry, located on the opposite end of the campus site. The building’s glass and concrete bands are meant to mirror the quarry’s natural contours and striations.
Office Buildings | Feb 9, 2023
Post-Covid Manhattan office market rebound gaining momentum
Office workers in Manhattan continue to return to their workplaces in sufficient numbers for many of their employers to maintain or expand their footprint in the city, according to a survey of more than 140 major Manhattan office employers conducted in January by The Partnership for New York City.
Giants 400 | Feb 9, 2023
New Giants 400 download: Get the complete at-a-glance 2022 Giants 400 rankings in Excel
See how your architecture, engineering, or construction firm stacks up against the nation's AEC Giants. For more than 45 years, the editors of Building Design+Construction have surveyed the largest AEC firms in the U.S./Canada to create the annual Giants 400 report. This year, a record 519 firms participated in the Giants 400 report. The final report includes 137 rankings across 25 building sectors and specialty categories.
Codes and Standards | Feb 8, 2023
GSA releases draft of federal low embodied carbon material standards
The General Services Administration recently released a document that outlines standards for low embodied carbon materials and products to be used on federal construction projects.
Giants 400 | Feb 6, 2023
2022 Reconstruction Sector Giants: Top architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S. building reconstruction and renovation sector
Gensler, Stantec, IPS, Alfa Tech, STO Building Group, and Turner Construction top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest reconstruction sector architecture, engineering, and construction firms, as reported in the 2022 Giants 400 Report.