Innovative Store Plugs Into Future
Imagine this shopping scenario (hint--at’s no fantasy):
You pull your electric car into a parking lot paved with recycled asphalt and plug into the store’s charging station to recharge your car’s battery as you shop.
Walking into the store, you pass under an entrance canopy constructed of solar energy panels. Once inside, you find skylights augmenting the electric lighting. The counter tops and floor are made of recycled materials.
Next you drop the children off at an Eco-Room staffed by store employees to promote environmental and energy awareness.
Now imagine this all happening at that modern shrine of small-town American retailing: Wal-Mart.
Many of these features and more are included in a new Wal-Mart store opening Wednesday in the City of Industry. The Arkansas-based chain calls this its store of the future.
“We can be environmentally friendly and at the same time run an efficient, profitable business,” said Jay Allen, vice president for corporate affairs at Wal-Mart. “These stores are real-world examples that the two [concepts] are not mutually exclusive.”
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The design contributes to an annual saving in electric power of up to $75,000--an energy reduction of 1.3 million kilowatt-hours, enough to power 200 houses for a year--according to store and utility officials.
“This is the first new construction effort [of this type] in California on this magnitude,” said Gregg D. Ander, chief architect for energy efficiency and market services at Southern California Edison, which provided technical services to Wal-Mart and will monitor the effectiveness of the store’s breakthrough design.
On opening day, actor and energy activist Ed Begley Jr. will drive his electric car to the store and hook up to one of the two charging stations in the parking area.
Inside, 180 skylights provide natural lighting and minimize the cost and use of artificial light. One type, called tracking skylights, uses microprocessors to follow the sun’s movements and maximize the amount of light being captured.
A photosensor system continuously monitors the amount of natural and artificial light and adjusts the electric lighting accordingly.
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Above the store entrance, 288 solar panels make up an 18-kilowatt solar power grid, providing 10% to 20% of the store’s energy.
The parking lot is paved with recycled asphalt, some counter tops are made of soy resin and recycled newspaper, floor coverings in the entryway are made of recycled tires, and other innovative building materials are used throughout the store.
The Eco-Room uses interactive video and laser-disc technology to teach children about the environment and energy conservation.
The City of Industry site is one of three environmental demonstration stores in the Wal-Mart chain.
“Any business today has to pay attention to the environment,” Allen said. “We are able to do this and still maintain our low prices.
“We hope other businesses learn from what we are doing and apply it also.”
