GSA has announced a Total Workplace initiative through which it plans to provide resources and expertise to help agencies reduce their office space, foster collaboration, better manage IT spending, and increase energy efficiency.
It said the Departments of Agriculture, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, and the Fish and Wildlife Service have joined the Total Workplace program and are on their way to realizing significant savings and reducing their real estate footprint.
GSA said it has helped DHS, through the initiative, to reduce rented space with subleasing, by increasing teleworking and the adoption of desk sharing, thereby reducing the department’s overall footprint and saving a projected $55 million in office real estate costs.
GSA also said that under the initiative, USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service will reduce its footprint from 43 state offices across the country to 12, andHHS will improve space efficiencies, reduce the agency’s footprint, and save the federal government more than $15 million in real estate costs over a ten-year lease.
The Total Workplace will also allow FWS to eliminate 72,200 square feet, saving taxpayers more than $3 million in annual real estate costs, GSA said.
GSA said it recently was able to incorporate regional offices into its renovated headquarters, which went from 2,200 to 3,300 employees, and consolidated a number of leases to eliminate $24.4 million in annual lease payments. The new headquarters – intended as a model of sorts for the rest of the federal government – includes high-performance green building initiatives, such as photovoltaic rooftop arrays; an underground cistern to recapture and reuse rainwater/grey water; a green roof; solar hot water panels; and high efficiency mechanical systems.
