The Leader - July/August 2008 - (Page 66)

Wor kpla ce desIgN : r e fle ctI Ng our chaNg I Ng W o rld aNd W o rk p atte rNs “Office hoteling or shared work space allows them to reserve space while they are in the office,” states Ann Hamann, vice president of marketing for Waltham, Mass.-based PeopleCube. “They can reserve it prior to their arrival and check in when they arrive or they can reserve space and check in when they arrive.” Reserving temporary work space ensures workers that they have a place to work and remain productive. It also facilitates collaboration between colleagues and team members. Office hoteling can also reduce real estate and associated costs because companies do not need dedicated space for each worker. Companies can also avoid additional real estate as their businesses grow. Hoteling also offers companies a way to reduce energy consumption and costs and addresses some employee needs to be associated with a company that practices environmental sustainability. “A reduction in real estate by implementing office hoteling reduces lighting and heating/cooling, thus saving the company money,” Hamann says. “It also reduces the company’s carbon footprint by reducing the consumption of energy, which helps to preserve the environment and support business sustainability initiatives.” In addition, energy can be scheduled based on occupancy of the work space. When meeting room space is reserved, heating/cooling and lighting can be scheduled and adjusted as needed. As a result, energy consumption and costs, as well as carbon emissions, can be reduced. This information can be presented on a management dashboard, allowing management to monitor energy patterns and make needed adjustments to the energy levels. In addition, space can be hibernated or marked unavailable until other available space is utilized. This optimizes space and energy utiliza- tion and minimizes energy consumption and related costs. goINg greeN No doubt, going “green” projects a good corporate citizenship image and indicates a company that is progressive and conscientious about its work place environment. In working with a number of companies, Ray Dunn, vice president of Tandus, a Dalton, Georgia-based company that offers single-source innovative floor covering solutions, confirms that “greening” of the work place is at the forefront of many companies’ goals – both for attracting and retaining talent and creating an environment that contributes to a more productive workforce. “I have also seen a trend toward designing space to address the realities of a more mobile workforce,” he says. “In other words, touchdown space, and entire offices designed with flexible space, flexible meeting space, etc. There’s also a trend of designing space to address and facilitate networking and information flow.” Some projects present particular challenges such as with Swiss Re, the global reinsurance company that occupies 14 floors of London’s tapering circular building nicknamed the “Green Gherkin.” Here the interior design required sustainable solutions that also complemented the building’s circular floor plan. As part of the fit-out process, C&A Floorcoverings, a Tandus company, was asked to create a custom carpet tile for Swiss Re’s unusual space. The design had to avoid a strong directional trend because this would have resulted in zippering where the carpet tiles met at an angle. The design team worked closely with the C&A design studio to develop an innovative solution. “Like the work place, the carpet that Tandus develops, designs and manufacturers is evolving to become more flexthe le ade r ible, more environmentally sensitive and more cost efficient than products of the past,” says Dunn. Tandus is especially focused on environmental solutions and recycling of floor covering materials as is evidenced by its Environmental stewardship Award program. In December 2007, Tandus recognized Cleveland Clinic with this award for its commitment to recycling. Here Tandus collaborated with the hospital to reclaim 143,518 pounds of carpet through the carpet reclamation program of its C&A Floorcoverings brand. Likewise, in April Tandus bestowed the award on Lockheed Martin for its collaboration with the aerospace company to reclaim 31,103 pounds of carpet through the same program. Since its C&A Floorcoverings brand began this closed-loop recycling program, Tandus has diverted more than 130 million pounds of reclaimed vinyl and vinyl carpet from landfills, incinerators, and turned it back into 100 percent recycled content backing for its floor coverings. “There is a greater concern than ever for what is happening to floor coverings when their useful life is over,” Dunn reports. “We are taking responsibility for our products `cradle to cradle.’ The story of how we have been on the forefront of this changing work environment is certainly unique. We are involved with several companies, such as Bank of America and Kaiser Permanente, where we assure that our product will be returned and reutilized and never go to landfill.” farther afeIld Work place design issues span the globe. Some world markets, such as Asia, have their own set of characteristics. But Asia cannot be lumped as one market with similar goals and needs. 66 J u ly / a u g u s t

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of The Leader - July/August 2008

The Leader - July/August 2008 Leadership Contents Message from the CEO Real Estate in the News Organizational Design Accommodating Growth Responding to the Challenge EMEA's Building Energy Rating TVA's Shortcut to Success ANZ Banking Group’s Jane Hamilton Tractus Asia’s Dennis Messeroll Arizona’s Greg Weiner Workplace Design Workplace Directory The Texas Report Industry Tracker Discovery Forum Findings Career Development Congratulations to 2008 Corenet Global Award Winners! Young Leader Economic Development in the News Connect with Corenet Global A Look Ahead

The Leader - July/August 2008

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