Press Cafe – University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley, CA
Architect: Gensler
Contractor: Turner Construction

Project Overview:

Constructed as part of the University’s larger plan to revive the area outside the Moffitt Library, the café’s unique architecture was designed by San Francisco-based firm Gensler. Its bi-fold door collapses up into an awning for the cafe during open hours, hinging at the top and the middle of the front panel. When the door is closed, all sides of the cafe look alike, the perforations in the exterior skin lighting up in the evenings. The perforations were created by using highly pressurized water jets on the café’s exterior metal panels, thus allowing the LED lights on the interior to shine through and giving the closed cafe an otherworldly glow.

Key Contribution by ELEMENT:

  • Design-Assist-Build Services for the Exterior Perforated Skin.

ELEMENT Services:

  • Design review
  • Preliminary materials, manufacturing, scheduling and budget estimation
  • 3D modeling
  • Design, fabrication and installation options and analysis
  • Scheduling
  • Prototyping and Samples
  • Mockups
  • Fabrication
  • Delivery
  • Installation Coordination

Select Publications:

  • “Press, a library café with a new look”, 3 October 2017, Berkeley News
  • “Outdoor snack kiosk Press opens in front of Moffitt Library”, 4 October 2017, The Daily Californian