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Ensco Sees The Light
Engineering, science and advanced technology result in "green" office solutions

by Anne Straub
Brevard Technical Journal

Ensco Senior Software Engineer, Jeff Etrick, illustrates a project's concept that is in accordance with the company's "green" building practices. New technologies are making improvements less costly for owners and address quality of life for the employees. Photo by Craig Rubadoux, © 2003.

When Ensco Inc. built the facility the company now occupies on North Wickham Road in Melbourne, it did more than accommodate its employees' work needs. It also reflected their priorities.

"We have a lot of people who were concerned about the environment," explained Al Siegel, division manager for Ensco. Many workers at the company's Melbourne location are in the earth sciences, such as meteorology and geophysics. And so the company built what's known as a green building, which makes environmental concerns a top consideration.

Environmental features used at the building are as complex as an air-conditioning system that uses thermal-energy storage to reduce power consumption, and as simple as low- to no-VOC-emitting paint on the walls. VOCs, or volatile organic compounds, are the culprit in the strong smells in newly painted or carpeted buildings.

Springfield, Va.-based Ensco provides engineering, science and advanced technology solutions for government and industry organizations. The company also operates a location in Cocoa Beach.

Almost 60 people work at the North Wickham Road building, which also serves as home base for another approximately 30 Ensco employees on-site at Patrick Air Force Base. Ensco's main business at its Melbourne location is supporting the Air Force Technical Applications Center at Patrick.

AFTAC monitors for compliance of international nuclear treaties. Ensco seismologists, meteorologists and others use a network of sensors to detect nuclear activity.

In Melbourne, two female employees became the driving force behind Ensco's green efforts. They started kicking around the idea during lunch breaks at Ensco's former facility in the Suntree area north of Melbourne. The two would rollerblade together and strategize.

Meteorologist Stephanie Seely had come across the green building concept in her outside reading, but she credits rollerblade partner Sheri Willoughby with taking hold of the idea. The two decided to approach the company about building according to environmental standards.

They found a receptive audience. "They've always been strong in caring about their people," Seely said of Ensco managers. "I'd thought it'd be something they'd go for, and they did."

Seely and Willoughby researched the idea and presented it to the building team, which took the concept from there. For Willoughby, the project revealed a calling. She's now pursuing a master's in business administration at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. Her goal is to understand business better so she can be a more effective environmentalist.

At Ensco, the pair researched the standards developed by the U.S. Green Building Council, a coalition of organizations that promotes environmentally friendly building practices. The council also certifies buildings that have met its requirements.

Ensco chose to adhere to green regulations on principle, rather than incur the added expense of hiring a consultant to document work and apply for certification. Had the company gone for certification, Siegel said the building would have qualified at the silver level.

That's one level higher than the base that most facilities qualify for, said Taryn Holowka, a spokeswoman for USGBC. The council certifies facilities based on a point system, with points awarded in categories such as site, materials and energy.

Since the group introduced its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards and certification system in March 2000, it has grown to capture 5 percent of the market of new commercial construction, Holowka said. Membership has doubled in the past two years.

"People are becoming more aware of it," she said of the green building standards. "It's becoming more mainstream."

New technologies also are making improvements less costly for building owners. Holowka estimates that making changes to gain certification at a base level would add only up to 1 percent of the cost of construction, though a higher certification might add more expenses. Companies then realize cost savings because of the higher energy efficiency of the building, and they enjoy the benefits of good public relations.

"If a company is seen as green, that's favorable for them," Holowka said. Ensco moved into the new building in February 2002. The 32,000-square-foot facility cost about $4 million. Some of the environmentally friendly features Ensco incorporated:

Exterior concerns. Scrub jays found on the property were relocated to a safe environment, and the campus includes land set aside as natural wetlands. Landscaping was done with native plants, with the exception of queen palms in front of the building.

Air-conditioning system. The system cost an extra $80,000 on the front end, but Siegel expects energy cost savings and FPL rebates to pay for it within four years. The system includes five in-ground units filled with coolant. The compressor runs at night, when energy is cheap, to chill the coolant. Fans circulate cool air throughout the day.

Low emissions products. The building uses low- or no-VOC emitting paint, wallpaper and carpet.

Lighting. Abundant windows allow for the use of natural light, as well as serve as a morale boost. Even interior offices receive light from outside, through transom windows located near the ceiling. The second-floor software engineering laboratory is partially lit by four skylights, which point north to eliminate noon glare. Artificial light used is energy efficient and reflects off the ceiling for a more pleasing atmosphere.

Material delivery. Part of green building codes address the amount of energy expended to deliver building materials to a construction site. Ensco bought all materials possible within a 500-mile radius to reduce energy used for transportation. The building's exterior, for example, is a brick veneer that was available locally and so using it conserved the energy that would have been spent transporting full bricks. As a bonus, the material turned out to be less expensive and more energy efficient than brick, Siegel said.

Many features incorporated into the building address quality of life for the employees.

"The best people have options, so we want to make sure this is a nice place to come to work," Siegel said. Some employee-friendly features:

Lighting. Every office has a view of the outside. Even interior offices have windows that look out into common areas with windows to the outside world. The plant concentrates its classified work in a 3,000-square-foot windowless area at the center of the building so that non-classified areas can enjoy outside views. Differing designs. Ensco asked for employee input in the design of the building. Scientists, who work on the first floor, asked for a pod design where clusters of offices open to a common conference area to allow for collaboration. Software engineers, located on the second floor, sacrificed some individual office space to save room for a large software lab.

Exercise and recreation. Grounds include a full basketball court, and employees can use the company exercise room. Lockers and showers are available.

Quiet room. An empty room provides a place for co-workers to have a private conversation in a non-threatening environment.

Media niche. Workers can catch up on the news on CNN or read a newspaper in a small room on each floor.

Ensco is continuing its environmental work by using green practices to clean and maintain the building. Its focus is to find less-toxic cleaning supplies to avoid indoor air pollution caused by odors and gases. "Since all the buildings are closed up tight, they can linger and cause people problems," said Matt Capuano, director of business operations for Ensco in Melbourne.

The company also is participating in a pilot program sponsored by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. The department is looking for feedback on its green housekeeping guidelines.

Capuano hopes to see more businesses get interested in the green building concept. "People don't even think about it," said Capuano, who describes himself as a conservationist at heart.

Companies with limited resources to spend on the topic could at least make small changes toward a greener facility. "It's not an all-or-nothing proposition," he said.

On the Web: www.ensco.com.