Wal-Mart Northern Illinois store with improved technologies
22 Jan '08
3 min read
Continuing its commitment of energy conservation and environmental sustainability, Wal-Mart Stores Inc announced the opening of its second generation High-Efficiency prototype (HE.2) store in Romeoville, Ill. Designed to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and use 25 percent less energy than a typical Wal-Mart Supercenter, the Romeoville HE.2 Supercenter is the first of four expected to open this year.
The new Supercenter will also bring 400 planned new jobs to the area and $37,000 in grant donations to local organizations when it opens at 8 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 23, after a 7:30 a.m. grand opening ceremony.
Improved Technologies Increase Efficiency The HE.2 will use many of the energy improvements from the first generation High-Efficiency (HE.1) series as well as introduce new and improved technologies, such as a state-of-the art secondary loop refrigeration system.
“We've taken the most efficient prototype in the retail industry and made it even better by incorporating some of the most innovative products in building today,” said Eric Zorn, president, Wal-Mart Realty. “We hope to continue making our stores even more efficient and sharing our learnings with the world, as we work toward a more sustainable future for our company and our customers.”
The 5 percent improvement in energy efficiency over the HE.1 stores comes from a streamlined design of the water-source heating, cooling and refrigeration system, coupled with the new secondary refrigeration loop. This is the first time secondary loop technology has been paired with a water-source system. The store components include: