Ally’s new office space in the heart of Charlotte reinforces the company’s “People First” ethos. The flexible, high-performance workplace prioritizes employee needs in a building that is not only LEED Silver and WELL Core & Shell Gold certified, but is also the first Wired Certified Platinum building in Charlotte. WiredScore evaluates and quantifies a building’s technology and communications systems, including access, bandwidth, and redundancy to minimize downtime; Platinum is the highest level of this sought-after certification.
Wellness and sustainability were also key design drivers. Deliberate strategies to support activity-based cycles throughout the workday include scalable modules, offices which are easily reconfigured into meeting spaces, and workstation zones that can accommodate four different work modes with adjustable furnishings. Balancing the need for focus and collaboration, work-focused zones are surrounded by modular collaboration spaces and workstations with direct views to the city beyond. The need for connections between groups is accommodated by careful stack planning and by linking key groups with communicating stairs to encourage serendipitous interactions. Ally’s “People First” ethos is evident in a design that supports wellness and social interactions throughout the workday; a fitness center, “immersion zones,” respite rooms, prayer rooms, and lactation rooms encourage mental breaks and relationship building.
High performance design reduced energy costs by 12% through daylight harvesting, occupancy sensors, and additional mechanical zones with sensors to allow for more variation in the system.
The project also reduces aggregate water consumption by 28.8%. To improve indoor environmental quality, the team intentionally specified bi-polar ionization to remove particulates as the air is being supplied into the space. All wood materials are FSC certified; other finish materials were specifically selected for a high recycled content.
