Apple has supplied New York City based site The Gothamist with a render of what the remodeled 5th Ave. flagship Apple Store will look like. The render shows off the reduction in glass panes from 90 to just 15, a change made possible by new glass technology pioneered at Apple’s Shanghai location.
The new panes being installed in the 5th Ave. store will be just over 32 feet long and roughly 10 feet wide. This should make the new version of Apple’s cube an even more impressive New York landmark, as is appropriate for one of the most heavily trafficked Apple Stores in the world.
The simplified design also shows off the fact that there will be a lot less hardware holding the panes together. This will make for a much less complex design and will enhance the feeling of airy openness that the cube engenders.
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The cube’s larger glass panes will most likely be made by Beijing-based North Glass Safety Glass Co., which produced the panes for the equally impressive store in Shanghai, China. These panes are 41 ft long, 8 1/2 feet wide and they’re curved to boot.
Seele GbmH & Co., a German glass manufacturer is Apple’s preferred partner as it is one of only two in the world that have been able to produce glass that stands up to the rigorous demands of Apple’s architects, like Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, who designed the 5th Ave. cube. The size of the panes leads us to believe that North Glass Safety Glass is the company behind these new pieces, however.
We think that the new store looks pretty spiffy, what about you? Does less glass make for a better Apple cube?
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