Going green: there are few causes that win the heart of your customers and community faster than being environmentally friendly. PNC Financial Services, Pittsburgh, is a case study of how turning green can boost marketing and build the brand

ABA Bank Marketing, Oct, 2008 by Deb Stewart

What company has more certified green buildings than any other?

Hint: It's not a fast-food chain, coffee shop or retailer--it's a bank!

The PNC Financial Services Group Inc., based in Pittsburgh, hits more certified green buildings than any company throughout the globe. But at PNC, green banking doesn't end with environmentally friendly construction, Green extends to every facet of the PNC Bank parent company's business model--including marketing, developing products, and educating employees and customers.

PNC is an example of a financial service company that has taken the green concept so seriously that the idea has evolved into an aspect of the company brand.

Let's walk through the various facets of this environmentally friendly approach find out how if began and get some advice on how other banks can embark on their own green journey.

How it began

In 1998 PNC had begun construction of a new around-the-clock operations center in downtown Pittsburgh. The company had selected the location Dora 17 different sites, looking for characteristics such as access to public transportation, 18-wheel truck access and so forth. A representative of the Green Building Alliance of Pittsburgh paid a visit to Gary Saulson, director of corporate real estate. By the end of that visit. Saulson had agreed to make the First Side Operations Center a green building. "We began this initiative because it was the right thing to do--for our community, our employees and ultimately our shareholders." says Saulson. The company felt that it was important to validate that the planned building was a true "green" building by going through the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification process. "We have continued with that thinking and the certification process ever since," says Saulson. When the building opened in 2000, it was the largest LEED-certified green building in the world at 650,000 square feet (the equivalent of 12 football fields). The building houses 1,500 employees.

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PNC's next office building project, PNC Global Investment Servicing headquarters in Delaware, raised the bar--building to LEED Gold standards--the first financial services building in the world to reach that standard. And, PNC's Washington D.C. regional headquarters is being built to even higher (Platinum) standards. Less than 5 percent of certified buildings are Platinum certified, explains Saulson.

Some of the new features for the Washington structure include an "eco" lobby and a green roof. The eco lobby treats the area as the transitional space it is. "Normally, you walk into a building on a humid 90-degree day and get goose bumps in the super-cooled lobby," says Saulson. "By using a three-story water wall in this space, we will radiantly cool the lobby by about 10 degrees, so that on a 90-degree day, a person would pass into an 80-degree lobby on the way to a 72-degree office without the sensation of being chilled and little of a conventional lobby's wasted energy."

The green roof will increase the building's energy efficiency and filter storm water--a concept that the company plans to continue using in future designs for two-story branch buildings. "So, what we have learned from these headquarters building clearly informs our retail branch designs." And PNC's decision to stay green has set a new standard for development in Washington, D.C. The city's mayor has praised PNC for setting "a, new bar for environmentally responsible, quality development" in the city.

PNC is so committed to green building that it has served as a consultant with other companies (even other banks) to help them reach their green goals. "We recently worked on the development of a bulk certification program with the USGBC. This option will simplify the certification process for companies like us who are building all of their stores under the same basic environmental model. We hope that simplifying the paper work will remove a commonly cited barrier for other retailers," says Saulson.

The company has won recognition for its environmental efforts. Saulson was recently recognized by the USGBC with its Leadership Award, for his "exceptional vision, leadership and commitment" to green building design and construction. The Urban Land Institute and Financial Times recognized PNC as one of 10 companies worldwide with the Sustainable Cities Award, for "leading positive change in sustainable land use." And, PNC was ranked among the 20 "Best Green Companies for America's Children" by Working Mother magazine in 2007.

The environmentally friendly branch

Green doesn't stop at PNC headquarters buildings.

PNC has 59 environmentally friendly bank branches across six states. The company has even obtained a trademark for the term "Green Branch." These environmentally friendly branches range in size from 3,200 to 3,600 square feet. Forty-one have been granted LEED certification, including 15 branches recently granted simultaneously under a bulk certification process pioneered by the company. Eighteen more branches are awaiting certification, with more under construction. What makes these buildings green is one of the most comprehensive green building formulas in the world.