REI offers tips for building an environmentally friendly DC

Chris Joyce, manager of the retailer's new LEED-certified distribution center, gives advice for going green.

By Corinne Kator, Associate Editor -- Modern Materials Handling, 1/30/2008

If you’re considering building an environmentally friendly distribution center and applying for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, Chris Joyce has some advice for you.

Joyce is the manager of a new Pennsylvania distribution center for the outdoor gear and clothing company REI. The 525,000 square foot facility recently received LEED Silver certification, and Joyce helped oversee the design, construction and certification process.

He offers the following tips to other DC managers looking to go green: 

Begin planning early: “It’s hard to decide you want a green building once you’ve started,” says Joyce. Committing to the LEED certification program from the get-go is important because it will affect your site selection, he says. “The location of your site has a lot to do with whether you can qualify.”

Work with a third party: REI hired 7group, a Pennsylvania-based consulting firm, to help it navigate the LEED process. During the early planning and design, says Joyce, the consultants shared helpful ideas they’d used in other clients' buildings. And when it came time to file all the LEED paperwork, he says, the consultants made sure every detail was right.

Communicate with your community: If you’re going the extra mile to be good to the environment, let your community know it. REI executives discussed their environmental goals with the local power provider, and the power company agreed to help them find sustainable electricity sources for their facility. REI also did some PR work—including several service projects—to raise local awareness of the company and its new green DC. The result, says Joyce, is that local people are now very supportive of REI’s presence in their community.

Go green in phases: If you can’t meet all your environmental goals at once, says Joyce, you can turn your building green in phases. REI, for example, wasn’t ready to invest in solar power for the DC, but the company built a reinforced roof that will support solar panels when the time is right.