Stanford University School of Medicine Center for Academic Medicine / HOK
+ 24
- Area :
19500 m²
Year :
2021
Text description provided by the architects. HOK designed the Stanford Center for Academic Medicine to provide peace of mind for staff who work long hours in hospitals and clinics. It also houses their academic and research efforts. The facility includes offices, meeting rooms, collaborative and teaching spaces, a fitness center and restaurant-style cafe. The HOK team helped medical school leaders plan their new office space and develop a detailed program that would house all clinical faculties and staff in a highly collaborative work environment.
The building mass serves as a barrier between the Stanford Medicine academic and clinical campus in Palo Alto and the adjacent Frederick Law Olmsted-designed arboretum. Three narrow, interconnected office wings rise above a landscaped courtyard planted with native species. The west office wing is raised above the ground, forming a large two-storey verandah below. The U-shaped building offers a view of nature from all vantage points.
The design takes advantage of Northern California’s mild climate by moving 20 percent of the program outside the building’s walls. People can socialize and work in a diverse mix of outdoor spaces. Porches, balconies, sky bridges and covered walkways extend from the building. Upper terraces create the feeling of being in the trees.
These spaces experience wind and shade in the summer and tranquility and direct sunlight in the winter. A passive-first design approach makes the most of the site. The sun, wind and the ecosystem have influenced everything from the initial planning decisions to the construction details. Narrow building wings combined with floor-to-ceiling windows provide plenty of natural light and views of the arboretum.
The curtain wall – with ceramic frit patterns and three-storey metal louvers on the west facade – minimizes glare and optimizes thermal comfort and daylight indoors. The building’s annual energy consumption intensity – 15.9 kBtu/SF/yr (including renewables) – represents an energy saving of 85% from baseline. The team has established biophilic design guidelines. The coastal living oak inspired the center’s design, which, like the native California tree, houses multiple environments in one space. The foliage blocks direct sun while allowing filtered light and breezes to pass through, creating a microhabitat of cool air beneath the canopy.
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