The Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division is on track to complete an extensive facility renovation that would have been much more complicated to complete in a pre-COVID work environment.

NAWCTSD's third floor renovation project created a new work environment for returning employees. The maximum telework schedule implemented as a protective measure during the pandemic provided an opportunity for the project to progress quickly and efficiently. The project to address a shortage of workspace in the de Florez Building, is progressing ahead of schedule, mainly due to having the majority of the workforce teleworking. According to the Infrastructure Operations Program Manager, Stephen Bohan, we gained 134 seats across the command with the redesign.

The original renovation plan involved several phases, each of which would have caused disruptions to the affected workforce.  "At NAWCTSD, we look at everything as an opportunity and COVID-19 was no different,” said Executive Director, John Meyers. "The initial plan to upgrade all the cubicles involved splitting the effort into many phases. Each phase consisted of temporarily relocating sections of the workforce into conference rooms while that section of cubes were dismantled, new wiring was run, and new cubes were installed. With the workforce on max telework, we were able to quickly accelerate and complete all the phases for the entire 3rd floor and the majority of the phases for the first floor with less workforce disruptions."  In addition to creating additional workspace, the renovation provided a more modern work environment.  

According to NAWCTSD Commanding Officer Capt. Tim Hill, the goals of infrastructure upgrades planned and executed prior to entering the COVID environment included, "addressing obsolescence in the 30+ year-old furniture system that was mostly original to the complex; addressing space concerns--our workforce was about to outgrow the existing seating space." He emphasized the need to improve the facility to continue meeting operational requirements. "(We are) increasing access to classified information/networks commensurate with the evolution of our work; replacing aging IT/electrical infrastructure in a manner that would enable maximum facility capacity and growth in bandwidth requirements; and achieving more flexibility in seating and include more collaborative space."

Gone is the old and obsolete furniture system and with the new furniture system a healthy environment is part of the design.  "Our new cube seats are now physically distanced, consistent with COVID recommendations. That allows us to safely return to the workspace much more easily than with the old furniture," said Hill. "Beyond the COVID implications, our updates are better enabling our team’s work. Our ability to process classified information has conservatively increased 300%, which is important as more of our work has moved into that realm."

Hill describes further how these upgrades and changes help NAWCTSD meets its mission. "We have created more areas to collaborate, listening to the common complaint that conference room availability didn’t meet the need. Now we have 'drop in' collaboration areas throughout the facility. Single cubes will also enable easier management of seating, both in keeping teams together and in handling any change in overall workforce size. With an expectation that we will retain a larger amount of regular telework post-COVID, the potential for accommodating more people with the same seating capacity offers a good deal of opportunity. For instance, this may allow us to turn current cube space into lab or classified processing space at some point if needed."

Meyers believes these upgrades will help NAWCTSD better meet mission requirements. "We have been able to capitalize on the opportunity that COVID-19 brought by accelerating and completing a number of upgrades across the Command. The new cube configurations allowed us to upgrade from 30-year-old worn out shared cubes to modernized individual cubes with automated sit/stand desks for all as well as freeing up space for new collaboration areas," he said. "The cell phone repeater project that was installed allowed us to have solid cell phone coverage for all carriers throughout the building, allowing the workforce to stay connected where ever they are, which is not just viewed as a simple convenience, but more importantly as an emergency safety requirement in this day and age. This project along with the upgrades to the cafeteria and the upgraded cubes have provided a much more accommodating environment for the workforce. We were able to expand our classified spaces and stand up the new LVC Distributed Operations Center expansion room to accommodate the exponentially increasing work in these areas. Finally, the construction and upgrades in Partnership IV have allowed us to launch the new NAVAL X Tech Grove. The Tech Grove consists of high-bay lab and conference collaboration space that will allow us to take our highly recognized Team Orlando ecosystem to the next level."

While many employees are still teleworking, those who have returned to the de Florez building are getting used to a new work environment. Daniel Millican who recently moved from the first floor to his new cubicle on the third floor said. "So far, I'm impressed. I appreciate the standing desk. [There is] a single key for all my lockers; that's nice. (There is) more desk space than what I had."

Opinions from returning employees who are familiar with the previous third floor layout are largely positive. "I like the dry erase board for sure, and the adjustable desk," says third floor employee Mark Morris. "I think the aesthetic is more appealing. It's less gray, less sad-looking." Morris also noted the collaboration spaces, welcoming the addition.

Looking forward, the upgrades and overall renovation will give our command a chance to provide the best possible accommodations for workers. When asked what's next for the project, Hill said, "I think we have to learn a little about what we’ve built and the new, post-COVID environment. We need to determine the sufficiency of our classified spaces. We need to understand seating load in a post-COVID environment … Analyzing the outcome of those things will allow us to plan what’s next."

John Meyers adds, "Moving into HPCON B and executing our reset plan has allowed us to start to utilize and test out all of the new upgrades in a more controlled fashion as more of the workforce is coming back into the workplace. We are looking forward to seeing what the next chapter of opportunities will bring."