The Adobe World Headquarters is the corporate headquarters of Adobe Systems, located in San Jose, California.
| Adobe World Headquarters | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Alternative names | Adobe Systems Headquarters complex Adobe Systems I, II & III |
| General information | |
| Status | Completed |
| Type | Commercial offices |
| Architectural style | Modernism |
| Location | 151 South Almaden Boulevard San Jose, California |
| Coordinates | 37°19′52″N 121°53′38″W / 37.331°N 121.894°W |
| Opening | West: 1996 East: 1998 Almaden: 2003 Founders: 2023 |
| Owner | Adobe Systems |
| Height | |
| Roof | West Tower: 78.9 m (259 ft) East Tower: 71.9 m (236 ft) Almaden Tower: 72 m (236 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | West Tower: 18 East Tower: 16 Almaden Tower: 18 |
| Floor area | 980,953 sq ft (91,133.5 m2) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Hellmuth, Obata & Kassabaum |
| Structural engineer | Nishkian Menninger |
| Main contractor | Devcon Construction |
| References | |
| [1][2][3][4][5] | |
Towers
editThe complex consists of four towers: West, East, Almaden, and Founders Tower. The 18-story, 78.9 m (259 ft) West Tower, first built in 1996, was the sixth tallest in the city of San Jose, and has 391,000 sq ft (36,300 m2) of office space. The 16-story, 71.9 m (236 ft) East Tower has 325,000 sq ft (30,200 m2) of office space, and was constructed next to the West Tower in 1998. In 2003, 17-story 72 m (236 ft) Almaden Tower was completed adding 273,000 sq ft (25,400 m2).[6] In 2023, The 18-story Founders Tower was completed, adding 1,250,000 sq ft (116,000 m2). The buildings are situated atop of a 938,473-square-foot (87,187 m2) enclosed parking garage.[7] Both the West and East towers house Adobe's Research and Development and Sales and Marketing departments, while the Almaden Tower houses administration and staff.
The Founders Tower was completed after Adobe changed the typeface on its logo in 2017, but features the pre-2017 logo for consistency with the three other towers.
Design
editThe buildings are known for their green design. The West Tower is listed as an Energy Star labeled building by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.[8] In 2006, all three towers were awarded Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification by the United States Green Building Council for environmental sustainability.[9]
San Jose Semaphore
editAdobe's Almaden Tower is also notable for having the "San Jose Semaphore," an installation consisting of four rotating lights created in 2006 by artist Ben Rubin.[10] The lights rotate every 7.2 seconds according to a code; the pattern was deciphered in 2007 by Mark Snesrud and Bob Mayo, who discovered the final message being Thomas Pynchon's The Crying of Lot 49.[11][12] The duo published a whitepaper chronicling their process of decoding.[13]
As of 2012, a new riddle was displayed;[14] the new code was deciphered in 2017 by high school teacher Jimmy Waters from Tennessee. He noticed that a particular sequence in the code might represent an audio silence. Running the full sequence through audio software and changing the pitch, he heard Neil Armstrong's "One small step for man" speech from the 1969 Apollo Moon landing.[12]
References
edit- ^ "Emporis building complex ID 102677". Emporis. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Adobe Systems I". SkyscraperPage.
- ^ "Adobe Systems II". SkyscraperPage.
- ^ "Adobe Systems III". SkyscraperPage.
- ^ Adobe World Headquarters at Structurae
- ^ "Adobe Systems Corporate Headquarters" (PDF). Rocky Mountain Institute. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 16, 2010. Retrieved November 6, 2009.
- ^ Denise, George (December 2006). "Adobe Systems Incorporated Three Platinum Certified Green Buildings" (PDF). Regenerative Ventures. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 26, 2011. Retrieved November 6, 2009.
- ^ "Energy Star Labeled Building Profile: Adobe, West Tower". Energy Star. Archived from the original on February 24, 2012. Retrieved November 6, 2009.
- ^ "Adobe Headquarters Awarded Highest Honors from U.S. Green Building Council" (PDF). Adobe Systems. December 5, 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 24, 2009. Retrieved November 6, 2009.
- ^ Frank, Priscilla (October 18, 2012). "San Jose Semaphore: Ben Rubin's Coded LED Message In The Sky (PHOTOS, VIDEO)". HuffPost. Archived from the original on August 5, 2020.
- ^ Singel, Ryan (August 17, 2007). "Sleuths Break Adobe's San Jose Puzzle, Find Pynchon Inside". Wired. Archived from the original on May 28, 2023.
- ^ a b Pizarro, Sal (March 13, 2017). "Adobe semaphore code cracked by Tennessee high school teacher". The Mercury News. Archived from the original on May 23, 2023.
- ^ Mark Snesrud; Bob Mayo. "Decoding the San Jose Semaphore" (PDF). Adobe. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
- ^ "Semaphore - Project". Adobe. Archived from the original on April 10, 2023.