AKA: IBM Research - Almaden, San Jose, CA

Structure Type: built works - commercial buildings - office buildings; built works - research structures - laboratories

Designers: McCue Boone Tomsick (MBT) Associates, Architects (firm); David Charles Boone (architect); Gerald Mallon McCue (architect); Frank Tomsick (architect)

Dates: constructed 1983-1986

650 Harry Road
Coyote Valley, San Jose, CA 95120-6099

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In 2012, the International Business Machines (IBM) Corporation operated eight world wide laboratories that made up its Research Group. Planning for the new Almaden Lab began just after the completion of the nearby Santa Teresa Lab in 1977. Built in the mid-1980s, Almaden occupied 690 acres northwest of its Santa Teresa facility (later referred to as the IBM "Silicon Valley Lab" [SVL]). San Francisco-based McCue Boone Tomsick Architects (MBT) designed both facilities. According to IBM's web site on the Almaden Lab: "Almaden has a rich history of achievement including a legacy of disk drive innovation, the creation of an industry - our researchers invented the relational database, establishing the emerging discipline of service science, in addition to being referred to as 'the Kitty Hawk of nanotechnology.'" Later uses of the facility were stated in 2012: "The major areas of research at Almaden are Science & Technology, including fundamental science, nanotechnology, spin physics and photoresists; Computer Science, with work in areas such content management, human-computer interaction, text analytics, services-oriented architectures and most recently healthcare informatics; Service Science Research, focusing on large scale, people-and information-intensive challenges and Storage Systems, from storage and file systems to server software and systems management. Additionally, technology licensing is a key element in our value creation strategy and a source of significant mutual benefits for IBM Research and its external partners." (See "IBM Research-Almaden,"Accessed 04/27/2012.)

IBM Research-Almaden Labs facility had four main buildings attached diagonally to a circulation spine. Three of the western-most lab buildings angled toward the northwest. The eastern-most building, nearest to the main entry, angled toward the northeast. Tel: 408.927.1080 (2012).

The major areas of research at Almaden are Science & Technology, including fundamental science, nanotechnology, spin physics and photoresists; Computer Science, with work in areas such content management, human-computer interaction, text analytics, services-oriented architectures and most recently healthcare informatics; Service Science Research, focusing on large scale, people-and information-intensive challenges and Storage Systems, from storage and file systems to server software and systems management. Additionally, technology licensing is a key element in our value creation strategy and a source of significant mutual benefits for IBM Research and its external partner

PCAD id: 17813