Lands’ End adds to green credentials with new distribution centre
Home shopping clothing specialist Lands’ End is hoping to achieve a prestigious green rating for its new environmentally-friendly distribution centre extension, which opens next week.
The new 61,000 sq ft building at the brand’s headquarters in Oakham, Rutland, will increase storage capacity by 200% and support further expansion in the UK and the rest of Europe, with over three million parcels forecast to be despatched in 2011. It is anticipated that the new building will receive a BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) rating of ‘excellent’.
Tim Curtis, Managing Director, Northern Europe, said: “This has to be one of the most environmentally-friendly distribution centres to be built in the UK in recent times. The building has already achieved an ‘excellent’ rating by our consultants Capita Symonds, who are licensed BREEAM consultants, so we hope that we will achieve the fully-endorsed rating.”
The building’s green technologies and features include:
· Solar energy to heat the washrooms and the water used within them,
· Air source heat pumps to heat the warehouse space,
· Grey water capture from the roof to flush toilets,
· Reclaimed heat from extracted air used to heat the office area,
· ‘Power shelters’ to seal lorries to the building, avoiding heat loss through loading bays,
· High energy efficiency (T5) lighting throughout with microwave sensors,
· Reclaimed stone – 500 tones in total – used for the capping layers under the building’s slab,
· Super insulation tested by thermal imaging technology and air tightness testing,
· All major elements of energy consumption sub-metered and connected to an energy management system to alert energy wastage,
· Lighting designed to support the ‘dark skies at night’ initiative, minimising light pollution for local residents and wildlife,
· Washrooms fitted with infrared taps to minimise water usage, plus a central shut off system for when the building is unoccupied,
· Wildlife-friendly planting, including wildflowers, introduced around the site,
· Site was ranked in the top 10% of UK sites under the Considerate Constructors’ scheme.
The distribution centre extension further reinforces Lands’ End’s commitment to the environment. Lands’ End was the first catalogue retailer to be certified under the Royal Mail’s Sustainable Mail scheme, mailing catalogues printed on paper sourced from sustainably managed forests and free of polywrap.