Building design and sustainable practice
- New double glass facade to reduce cooling costs and promote natural airflow
- Next-generation energy technologies saving money for the corporation such as a pair of living rooftops to collect and channel rainwater and reduce heat gain
- Operable windows to draw fresh air
- Workplace design to promote focus, collaboration, learning and socialization
- Vertical neighborhoods to promote community
- Conference rooms with open terraces
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Executives at PNC had already incorporated green into their overall corporate brand strategy allowing them to make a business case for building green easier. PNC is also working on a net-zero energy bank branch to roll out across America soon.
PNC has a dedicated innovation group within the Corporate Real Estate Department that focuses on testing new products for building design and sustainable construction. The facilities group often acts as test marketers for low energy lighting schemes, HVAC systems and workplace furniture before they are implemented corporate-wide.
They are part of a larger strategy by the city of Pittsburgh to transform itself from a dying rust-belt steel manufacturing economy to a progressive, environmentally friendly economy. Pittsburgh is becoming successful at capturing the brainpower of students graduating from Carnegie Mellon and University of Pittsburgh and convincing them to stay, work, and raise families locally.
Cities bank on Innovation Districts
Municipalities like Pittsburgh, Boston, and New York are showing how government can work boldly with corporations and CRE departments to foster the creation of jobs and innovate for a better future. Together they are blazing a new trail for the workplace of tomorrow by offering best-in-class, value driven solutions based on solid strategic planning and sustainable design.