I am dealing with a case where the only explicit "work stations" are the cashier areas in the grocery store... then there are break rooms and such, in the back part of the store where workers assumingly spend some of their time as well.
My questions are: 1. When defining the area of the regularly occupied spaces in the grocery store, is it necessary to account for the total floor area of the store or just the cashier areas where the employees are stationed most of the time? 2. How about break rooms/back offices in grocery stores, should they be considered as regularly occupied?
Many thanks in advance.
Michael Miller
Project Architect236 thumbs up
September 5, 2012 - 1:19 pm
On #1, I think it would be difficult to entirely discount the main sales area, since employees who stock the shelves would work in those spaces for continuous periods of time, and that is part of the criteria USGBC uses for 'regularly occupied'. If they only do regular stocking at night, however, perhaps you could argue in a narrative that the area does not need to be daylit. (There aren't skylights, are there?)
Re #2: Break rooms are not counted as regularly occupied, but back offices almost certainly would be. Also, in a grocery situation, I imagine that some/all of the stockrooms would be cosidered regularly occupied workspaces, as well.
Alexander Aaltonen
Analyst, Real Estate ConsultingRamboll
26 thumbs up
September 12, 2012 - 8:03 am
Big thanks, Michael.
Actually, we are pursuing option 2, Views from regularly occupied spaces that is. So, no need for taking skylight into account in this case.