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Walgreens To Build First Self-Powered Retail Store

Posted by samzenpus on from the all-in-one dept.

MojoKid writes "We hear about green deployment practices all the time, but it's often surrounding facilities such as data centers rather than retail stores. However, Walgreens is determined to go as green as possible, and to that end, the company announced plans for the first net zero energy retail store. The store is slated to be built at the corner of Chicago Avenue and Keeney Street in Evanston, Illinois, where an existing Walgreens is currently being demolished. The technologies Walgreens is plotting to implement in this new super-green store will include solar panels and wind turbines to generate power; geothermal technology for heat; and efficient energy consumption with LED lighting, daylight harvesting, and 'ultra-high-efficiency' refrigeration."

8 of 186 comments (clear)

  1. But... by longbot · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...is it powered by the tears of employees?

    --
    I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it! --Longbottle
    1. Re:But... by germansausage · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I know everybody loves to bash Walmart, but is really justified? At the risk of greatly oversimplifying, you can help poor people by 1. getting them more money, or 2. making the things they need to buy cost less. Walmart is working very hard at doing thing 2. Do you think Walmart's margins are higher or lower than the retail industry average?

    2. Re:But... by Rockoon · · Score: 4, Insightful

      That is what the tribalists dont understand.

      When things are cheaper because of greater efficiencies, everyone involved wins.

      In truly free trade, everyone wins. Whenever I am better at A's than B's, and you are better at B's than A's, then trading is of benefit to both of us.

      Thats regardless of any other factors. For instance, I can also be better at B's than you are at B's, yet trade still benefits both of us because no matter how much better I am then you at B's, I am still better at A's than B's.

      The complaints about companies like walmart are cloud and mirrors around the idea that you may not be good enough at either A's or B's to make a reasonable living (= low wages.) But this really isn't an argument against walmart.. the problem is skills. Those attacking walmart and corporations like it won't improve anyones skills, but may end up costing people their low skill jobs.

      --
      "His name was James Damore."
  2. Re:Geothermal heating? by overshoot · · Score: 4, Informative

    The preferred term is "geoexchange" precisely to avoid this confusion.

    --
    Lacking <sarcasm> tags, /. substitutes moderation as "Troll."
  3. Lighting Choices Are Not Extraordinary by TheStonepedo · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Daylight harvesting is a nasty misnomer - it really just means turning the artificial light down when natural light makes the space acceptably-bright. This is why Walmart stores built in the past two decades have skylights.
    The 2012 IECC requires daylight harvesting or separate switching for daylight zones; complying with new codes is hardly a newsworthy achievement.

    LED lighting for commercial spaces just recently reached a point where lumen output, specifically illuminance at the target work plane, can equal that of fluorescent for the same power input.
    With a cost roughly double that of fluorescent fixtures, LED fixtures' lamp life allows the owner to spend less on maintenance labor, with a payback on the order of 2-10 years. A company as big as Walgreens would be foolish to use anything other than LED unless they expect to go broke before reaching their ROI.

    I like what these guys are doing, but the PR spin is a bit much.

    --
    I'll be your candy shop of infinite deliciousity if you'll be my discotheque of endless rump-shaking.
  4. The secret of self powers store revealed! by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 4, Funny

    In a shocking development, the NBC has learned that Walgreens is installing a "cushioning" carpet which is not just any simple cushiony carpet. It has tubes buried in it, and as the shoppers walk on it they squeeze these tubes and the air gets compressed and it turns a turbine that produces electricity. Mr Rube Goldberg, VP Energy Harvesting Division of Walgreens has conceded that the whole idea was his personal invention.

    --
    sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
  5. Re:Kilowatts? by Kufat · · Score: 4, Informative

    You've got it backward, I'm afraid. Watts are a measure of power, while watt-hours are a measure of energy (power times time.) A device that uses one kW of power while operating uses 24 kWh of energy per day of operation

  6. Re:Kilowatts? by jklovanc · · Score: 4, Informative

    A watt is calculated by volts (a measurement of electrical potential) time amps (a measurement of resistance). Notice that there is no time value in that calculation.

    To correct your calculation;
    a 1 kilowatt device used constantly for 24 hours uses 24 kilowatt hours. Notice watts time hours equals watt hours. The kilo is there just to reduce the number of zeros needed. for example a 1 watt device used for one thousand hours uses 1000 watt hours or 1 kilowatt hour.