Employee wellness has been a central component of office design for companies in Silicon Valley, drawing people into the office with attractive workspaces, ample activities, and stocked pantries. With increased attention to a company’s products and production sustainability, the office operations are also examined as an important contributor to the company’s carbon footprint. To address this, an industry-leading tech company assembled a team including SWA, XL Construction, Michael Green Architecture, and SERA Architects to develop its first mass timber office.

Mass timber constructions replace the steel column frames of the building with wood, a material that can be carbon negative as the timber may take more carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere than it emits. The carbon dioxide is sequestered once the timber is harvested for building materials. Not only does mass timber reduce the project’s embodied carbon, but it is also a faster construction process and requires lower fuel usage.

SWA took the design initiatives from the client into the site and curated contemporary site furnishings, a 100% native planting pallet, and a pedestrian bike network that weaves through the project site and ties into the larger transit system. This project redefines the idea of a high-performance workplace, showcasing the potential of biophilic design that benefits the user and extends to the greater community. Employee wellness now expands beyond amenities to include healthy building materials, a LEED Platinum certification, and ample access to nature.