3COM CORPORATION Santa Clara, California, USA 3Com, founded in 1979, has boosted its sales and kept expanding its operations, backed up by its core strengths - foresight and technological superiority. The company is shifting from a networking system maker to a solution provider in order to meet the pressing needs of the times. 3Com's facilities strategy is as flexible and daring as its business that has always grasped new business chances. The company has now been based in Santa Clara of Silicon Valley for ten years. Its headquarters under the bright California sun is a reflection of its flat and open culture and has evolved through different phases to a stage where "connectivity" is an all-governing theme throughout the campus. A decade ago one could find only four buildings on the 21-acre campus, but now there are 10 buildings on two campuses connected by a bridge, totaling 41 acres. Every time a new phase is added the existing buildings would also be renovated, to keep balance between the old and the new. The four buildings built during phase 1, completed in 1990, are designed in a low-key manner. The factory, laboratory and office blocks were so generic that they could easily be subleased when the company contracted. The buildings have simple exterior and all floors are laid out identically. The rapid growth of 3Com thereafter resulted in the new construction of two buildings as phase 2, where they added modern and refined design to the buildings to express the maturity of the company while improving amenities for workers to support their health and lifestyle. In Phase 3 the FAR quadrupled and the buildings became taller. Building 11, the last to be planned in Phase 3 is the culmination of the whole project, and is expected to be 7 stories high.           Location: Santa Clara, California, USA     Move-In Date: Phase 1 1990, Phase 2 1997, Buildings 8-10 1998     Floor Area: Building 6: 128,600 ft2 Building 5: 225,000 ft2     Workforce: 4,000     Building Design: Studios Architecture     Interior Design: Studios Architecture     Interview Date: 2000.6