Navy Federal Credit Union's new state-of-the-art call center in Pensacola has become Florida's first commercial building to receive LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) "Gold" Certification, making it a certified environmentally friendly "green building."
LEED is part of the U.S. Green Building Council's Green Building Rating System, which is a voluntary, national standard for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings. NFCU's 56,000-square-foot building is one of 25 "Gold" rated LEED projects in the United States. Designed and constructed to withstand winds up to 140 mph, the facility was undamaged by Hurricane Ivan.
Navy Federal said the primary objective its Pensacola call center was to develop an employee-focused facility while reducing capital costs, energy costs, healthcare costs and increasing employee productivity and retention. The building and its grounds include a fitness center, walking trails, dining amenities, training facilities, a "mothers" room and more.
The building's exterior was constructed with materials used to evoke a local style. The interior is intended to create the most productive environment possible, NFCU said. Call center workstations are organized to take advantage of views and to maximize the use of daylight as a lighting source. Workstations use the Herman Miller Resolve system, "creating open, inviting, space-efficient workstations where employees feel comfortable and connected."
The main call center features a 400-foot long glass and Kalwall partition providing employees a breathtaking view of the live oaks and the pond beyond. The main call center floor is controlled by a very sophisticated lighting system including a solar shade/reflector along the window wall with automated shades, which dims the lights and raises or lowers the shades as required, eliminating glare and maintaining the optimal lighting level.
