The Barking Seal

Applied Trust’s Deck-tacular Summer!

04Nov
Author: dan Categories: Green IT, Ramblings Comments: 2
This past spring Applied Trust took its third-floor deck space to a new level!

Although the deck has always been a desirable aspect of Applied Trust’s office environment, we felt the space wasn’t being used to its full potential. Some employees said that it was too sunny and got too hot to work out there with a laptop. Others said it was the lack of acceptable work space and the presence of pigeons that deterred them from working out there. We decided to make an effort to provide our engineers with a more inviting outdoor workspace that would be fun to use and would add value to our work space for years to come.

After looking into options we decided on some sun shades, some new workspaces, a way of providing music, and deck plants. The plants were a key element; not only do they add to the aesthetics of the deck, but they also add to the “green” image of the office, by helping to offset our carbon output. We chose the following plants to fill the planters:
- Carex Albula: These will grow to drip down the sides of the planters.
- Elijah Blue: These will grow gold-colored grass.
- Dragon’s Blood Sedum: These will turn burgundy and produce bright pink flowers.
- Brilliantissima: These will grow red fruit in the fall and produce white flowers in the spring.
We chose sustainably harvested teak planters to house the plants. These products help reforest degraded land and restore ecological productivity. Last, we decided to go with the vine Clematis (Alba Luxurians), which will grow up and over the deck and provide some natural shade. This should also lower our energy costs during the summer, as the sun shines pretty intensely through those east-side windows. However, until the vines have had a couple of years to cover the deck completely, we’ve installed some sun shades over the deck to provide shade for the workspaces. The plants really help to provide a welcoming space for Applied Trust’s engineers to work outside and enjoy Boulder’s beautiful weather.

In order to facilitate meetings on the deck we created a meeting location area that could be reserved, and Trent hooked up some cordless IP phones to which we’re able to forward our desk phones while we’re out there. Rounding out the new deck features are a pair of wireless speakers and some overhead lights.

The new deck also comes in handy for hosting formal and informal gatherings outside of normal hours. In order to properly break in the newly remodeled deck we hosted a “deck warming” party this past June, which was a fun time for all.

In all, we are quite proud of our new space and we encourage folks to stop by for a visit and check it out!
Tags: applied trust, deck, green, summer