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retrofit briefing Technologhy4Change

Published by BRE Trust

A flagship development for sustainability in retail

4/9/2012

M&S opens biggest, greenest store in Cheshire Oaks

Marks and Spencer has opened its most carbon efficient store to date in Cheshire Oaks near Liverpool. The 148,000 sq ft sustainable learning store is the retailer’s second largest commercial premises and has been designed to minimise the environmental impact of business operations through every aspect of its design and construction.

Materials, systems and building fabrics have all been carefully selected to reduce the carbon footprint of the site and ensure minimisation of waste.  2600 m2 of Hemclad® panels have been used in the external walls to give a U value of 0.12W/m2K and saving around 360 tonnes of CO2 emissions. The system allows the store to 'breathe' and also absorbs carbon from the atmosphere.

The building’s recycled aluminium roof incorporates an exposed ceiling that was made using 100 percent FSC certified glulam beams which removed the need for a suspended ceiling. Other sustainable features contributing to the store’s BREEAM Excellent design rating include:

  • Improved insulation and thermal mass achieved by partially sinking the building in the ground with earth mounding around the perimeter
  • Free cool air handling via earth ducts and displacement ventilation
  • A biomass boiler and heat reclaim which is predicted to deliver 70 percent of the heating demand
  • An 80,000 litre rainwater harvesting tank that collects water from the roof to serve the site's toilets and green wall. The system is predicted to displace 25 percent of the store’s mains water demand
  • Water efficiency measures including water meters, waterless urinals, sensor taps and leak detection systems
  • HFC-free air handling units
  • A hydrocarbon refrigeration system
  • A biodiverse landscape plan that includes 228 new trees and a sustainable urban drainage strategy featuring permeable paving and a swale
  • Electric car charging points and 100 covered cycle stands to encourage sustainable modes of transportation.

100 percent of construction waste was diverted from landfill and over 80 percent of all waste was segregated on site. A number of community initiatives benefitted from resource sharing of left over materials and the store has also created over 350 local jobs, including work placements under the Marks & Start programme which provides employment opportunities for disadvantaged groups.

The operational energy of M&S Cheshire Oaks is predicted to be 30 percent lower than a traditional store and will generate over a third less carbon emissions. Click here to view a short film about the making of the store.

Project team

Developer / contractor: Simons Group Ltd

Architect: Aukett Fitzroy Robinson

Building services: Sustainable Design Solutions Ltd

Structural civil engineering: AECOM

M&E: Balfour Beatty Engineering Services

Quantity surveyor: Gleeds

Project manager: David Evans Project Services Ltd.

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