办公立面：玻璃 铝板组成的外立面—— SOM新作品

约翰-沃尔普国家运输系统中心成立于1970年。位于马萨诸塞州剑桥市的新大楼由SOM设计和建造，进一步履行了这一重要使命。

这座建筑被设计成一个垂直园区，将美国运输部沃尔普中心的所有设施集中在一个屋檐下，包括实验室、数据中心、办公室和便利设施，这些设施曾分散在多个建筑中。美国交通部沃尔普中心在肯德尔广场社区的围墙内运行了五十年，现在终于成为公共领域的一部分，其建筑结构达到了很高的建筑性能水平。

The John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center was founded in 1970 to advance transportation innovation for the public good, and its new building in Cambridge, Massachusetts—designed and engineered by SOM—furthers this critical mission. Conceived as a vertical campus, this building brings the entirety of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Volpe Center under one roof, with laboratories, data centers, offices, and amenities that were once spread across several structures. After five decades of operation within a fenced campus in the Kendall Square neighborhood, the U.S. DOT Volpe Center is now finally part of the public realm, in a structure that achieves a high level of building performance.

剑桥最隐秘的地方。在美国国家航空航天局（National Aeronautics and Space Administration）落户休斯顿之前，该中心最初占地 14 英亩的园区原本是为该机构准备的，但近年来设施日渐陈旧。

为了建立新的总部，总务管理局与麻省理工学院的投资管理公司签订了一份史无前例的土地协议，由该公司开发占地四英亩的大楼，以换取剩余的十英亩校园土地。

The best-kept secret in Cambridge. The center’s original, 14-acre campus had been intended for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration before the space agency settled in Houston, and in recent years, the facilities grew outdated. To realize a new headquarters, the General Services Administration entered an unprecedented land agreement with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Investment Management Company, which developed the building on four acres in exchange for the remaining 10 acres of campus land.

几十年来，该中心一直被俗称为 "剑桥最隐秘的地方"，是一个进行尖端研究的封闭环境。然而，该中心的工作与肯德尔广场（Kendall Square）的身份完美契合，肯德尔广场是一个以技术创新为驱动力的创业街区。

在这座占地41万平方英尺的新建筑中，SOM授权美国交通部沃尔佩中心首次将其自身及其工作展现在街景中。

For decades, the center had been colloquially known as “the best-kept secret in Cambridge,” a gated setting where cutting-edge research took place. Yet the work of the center fit perfectly with the identity of Kendall Square, an entrepreneurial neighborhood driven by technological innovation. For the new, 410,000-square-foot building, SOM empowered the U.S. DOT Volpe Center to reveal itself, and its work, to the streetscape for the first time.

揭示创新。新中心的建筑设计通过几种策略将机构展示出来。出于安全考虑，这座 13 层高的建筑四面向后退了至少 75 英尺，为室外公共绿地留出了空间，这在以前是不存在的。

里德-希尔德布兰德景观设计公司设计的景观由玛雅-林（Maya Lin）设计的一系列起伏的小丘组成，让公众可以近距离一睹中心的风采。一个三层高的透明入口面向第五街--让人们可以欣赏到以天然材料装饰的内部空间，许多设施都位于这里。沿着北面的宾尼街，六扇 14 英尺高的车库门敞开着，引导车辆进出大楼，同时也为中心人因实验室的演示提供了场所。

Uncovering the innovation. The architecture of the new center puts the institution on display through several strategies. The 13-story building is set back at least 75 feet from the property line on all sides for security purposes—leaving room for outdoor public greenspaces that hadn’t existed before. Featuring a series of undulating mounds by Maya Lin, the landscape created by Reed Hilderbrand Landscape Architecture affords the public an intimate glimpse into the center. A three-story, transparent entrance faces Fifth Street—providing views into an interior finished in natural materials, where many of the amenities are located. Along Binney Street to the north, six 14-foot-tall garage doors open to usher vehicles in and out of the building, while also providing a place for demonstrations led by the center’s human factors labs.

校准外墙，实现最佳性能。剑桥是美国气候较为凉爽的地区之一，一年中大部分时间太阳都在低空徘徊，并深入到该地区的建筑物内部。为了实现该项目的 LEED 白金认证目标，SOM 对建筑结构进行了设计，以应对一天中不断变化的环境条件。新中心的朝向最大限度地利用了日光，而玻璃和铝制外墙则采用不同的排列方式，以最大限度地减少眩光。

Calibrating the facade for optimal performance. Cambridge sits in one of the nation’s cooler climates, where the sun hangs low for most of the year and penetrates deep inside the region’s buildings. For the project’s LEED Platinum certification target, SOM engineered the structure to respond to the changing conditions of the day. The new center is oriented to fully maximize daylighting, while the glass and aluminum facade is crafted in different arrangements to minimize glare.

表面积最小的外墙朝向东西两侧，早上和晚上这里的眩光最强。东面和西面的外墙由玻璃和垂直铝板组成，铝板像飞机的鳍一样向外伸展，以阻挡眩光和太阳辐射。水平板和内部遮阳板保护着南面波特街更宽阔的立面，该立面在下午时段接受最直接的阳光照射。建筑北侧全年都能接受间接阳光照射，因此可以通过简单的玻璃和铝幕墙来优化自然采光。

The facades with the least surface area face the east and west, where glare is strongest in the mornings and evenings. The eastern and western facades are clad in glass with vertical aluminum plates that stretch outward like the fins of an aircraft to block glare and solar radiation. Horizontal plates and interior solar shades protect the more expansive facade to the south on Potter Street, which receives the most direct sunlight in the afternoon hours. The north side of the building receives indirect sunlight year-round, which made it possible to optimize its natural lighting with a simple glass and aluminum curtain wall.

打造垂直校园。中心由两个长方形组成，一至三层为较大的底座，上层为后退式。这种结构是营造内部垂直校园外观和感觉的关键。大部分设施都集中在底层，将中心的 1300 名工作人员集中在一个区域内。

主楼梯脚下铺设水磨石，墙壁、天花板和座椅采用白橡木，通向一个大型会议区、培训室和一个咖啡厅，咖啡厅上方有一个宽敞的露台。一楼的儿童保育中心包括一个封闭的室外游乐场，而健身中心则位于六楼，旁边还有一个较小的露台，为锻炼或休息提供了空间。

Creating a vertical campus. The center takes the form of two rectangular shapes, comprising a larger base for floors one through three followed by a setback above. This configuration is key to creating the look and feel of a vertical campus inside. Most of the amenities are aggregated at the base, to connect the center’s 1,300 staff members in a concentrated area. A main staircase—finished in terrazzo underfoot with white oak along the walls, ceiling, and seating—leads to a large conference area, training rooms, and a cafe with a spacious terrace upon the setback above. A child care center on the ground floor includes an enclosed outdoor playground, while a fitness center is housed on the sixth floor beside a second, smaller terrace that provides space for exercise or respite.

该中心包括一系列用于测试、研究和数据科学的实验室。人为因素实验室将第一层 90,000 平方英尺的面积用于车辆测试，此外还有一个用于模拟预演的消声室。数据科学设施则在较高楼层跟踪地球上各大洋的船只位置。由 Gensler 设计的办公室占据了建筑的其余部分，日照最充足。

The center encompasses a series of labs for testing, research, and data science. The human factors labs dedicate 90,000 square feet of the first level to vehicle testing in addition to an anechoic chamber for simulation prep. Data science facilities track the location of vessels across the planet’s oceans and seas on the higher floors. Offices designed by Gensler occupy the remainder of the building and receive the most daylight.

平面设计。SOM 的品牌设计工作室为该中心设计了反映该机构形象的标识和路标。新的数字和字母字体在室外和室内都有应用，以传达一种运动感，每个字符的风格都在墙壁上呼应，仿佛在空间中移动。许多数字和部门标签水平延伸，就像汽车或火车呼啸而过，而楼梯间的数字则垂直延伸，反映了工作人员在室内流动的方向。

Graphics. SOM’s branding studio developed signage and wayfinding for the center reflective of the institution’s identity. A new typeface for the numbers and letters is applied both outside and indoors, to convey a sense of motion, with each character styled to echo across the walls, as if moving through space. Many of the numbers and department labels stretch horizontally, like a car or train whizzing by, while numbers in the stairwells stretch vertically, mirroring the direction of staff circulating inside.

可持续性和弹性。SOM 与 Atelier Ten 合作设计了这座新中心，使其具有高性能的抗震性和可持续性。外立面和朝向在帮助建筑达到 LEED 白金级目标方面发挥了重要作用，三层玻璃和 48% 的整体窗墙比也为建筑的卓越节能性能做出了贡献。

光伏屋顶、空气热泵、雨水收集和灌溉也同样增强了建筑的可持续性。按照联邦设施的要求，该建筑采用防爆材料，机械系统位于顶部，选址远离地块周边，具有很高的安全性，打造了一个既安全又温馨的研究和创新中心。

Sustainability and resiliency. In collaboration with Atelier Ten, SOM designed the new center for high performance in its resiliency and sustainability. The facade and orientation play a major role in helping the building reach its LEED Platinum target, and triple-glazing and an overall window-wall ratio of 48 percent contribute to the building’s exceptional energy performance. A photovoltaic roof, air force heat pumps, stormwater capture, and irrigation likewise enhance the building’s sustainability. As required for a federal facility, the building is highly secure, with blast-resistant materials, mechanical systems placed at the crown, and siting distanced from the parcel’s perimeter—creating a center of research and innovation that is as safe as it is welcoming.

项目信息

建筑师：Skidmore, Owings & Merrill

地点：美国

年份：2023

摄影：Dave Burk