On March 22, California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) closed an inspection by letter case into Apple’s Cupertino, Calif., headquarters after reports of at least three employees walking into glass panels at Apple Park and hurting themselves.
Paola Laverde, public information officer for the California Department of Industrial Relations told USGNN.com™ that someone made an informal complaint about the issue. Cal/OSHA proceeded with an inspection by letter in January. It required Apple to respond with a way to abate the situation. Apple responded to the letter on January 25, informing Cal/OSHA that it would put distraction dashes around the area.
According to Laverde, Apple posted information about how to stay safe on its Apple Park specific website. She did not confirm the injuries reported by several news outlets this year. Laverde says that any injuries that occurred were non-reportable, meaning they were not serious enough for Apple to be required to report them.
“No injuries were reported to us so I do not know how many injuries occurred,” she says.
Subchapter four, article three of Cal/OSHA’s Title 8 regulations specifies that “employees shall be protected against the hazard of walking through glass by barriers or by conspicuous durable markings.”
An anonymous source disclosed to Bloomberg in February that some of Apple’s staff put Post-It notes on glass doors throughout the ring-shaped building, but were told to remove them to preserve the building’s design aesthetic.
German company sedak supplied the glass for the project, which features 872 bent laminates and 1,616 glass units for the location’s canopies.
C.R. Laurence (CRL) supplied more than 1,000 custom panic handles with custom finishes for Apple Park. The company also designed and developed custom electric strikes with lock indicators specifically for the project.
“I’ve read reports that Apple has already addressed the issue by applying safety decals to the glass systems. These surface-applied decals are typically applied near eye level to give a ‘floating’ appearance that serves to subtly warn pedestrians of the presence of glass,” says Andrew Haring, vice president of marketing at CRL. “Reducing the risk of accidental collision with glass panels and doors has been a consideration for some time. I think the stature of this project in particular is garnering more attention. With today’s architecture incorporating more glass than ever, it’s important to address and prioritize safety in a way that still satisfies the design intent.”