How sustainable can you make a warehouse?

Your clients are looking to buy EVs and asking questions about the environmental footprint of the designs you’re developing. Increasingly, they’re seeing the value of paying for products and materials that last a lot longer and emit less carbon over their lifetime.

Then there’s the role of the designer – specifying and integrating all the technologies that reduce environmental footprints.

With this in mind, Blum commissioned a 3,150sqm warehouse and showroom to serve its South Island customers. Located in Wigram, it’s a stunning demonstration of the way high-quality design can help reduce pressure on the environment– while still providing a stunning showcase for products and a productive workplace for staff.

Blum worked with a multifunctional team to create a multifunctional space. Combining the ideas and skillsets of architects, structural engineers, mechanical engineers and the construction company, the result is a warehouse with unmistakeable ‘wow factor.’ Here are just a few of the concepts that have been implemented.

• Reducing energy inputs – for instance, by investing in a ground-source heat pump to provide year-round supplies of warm water for underfloor heating to maintain the building at a comfortable temperature.
• Adding a photovoltaic array to the roof to provide energy for battery-powered forklifts and EV charging stations for visitors.
• Collecting and storing rainwater in a 40,000-litre tank for use in toilets and to irrigate gardens.
• Avoiding the use of materials that contain harmful substances, such as VOCs.
• Choosing low emissivity glass for thermal and environmental benefits.

Despite the additional up-front costs, Blum believes it has scored a bargain. Managing Director Michael Hawkins says the new Christchurch facility will deliver value for decades to come.

“At 3,150sqm, the new warehouse is about 50 percent larger than we currently need. We’ve got space to grow into while benefiting every year from the savings we gain through sustainable, long-term design,” he says.

The team behind the project.

Warren & Mahoney – Architects

Quoin – Structural Engineers

Cosgroves – Mechanical Engineers

Haydn & Rollett – Construction