General Mills opens LEED Gold-certified facility in Indiana
General Mills has opened its new LEED Gold-certified customer service facility in Fort Wayne, Indiana which is the largest warehouse and distribution centre project in North America, and also the third largest in the world to achieve the certification.
Developed by Rockefeller Group Development Corporation, the building incorporates multitude of green features, which enables it to minimise its impact on the environment. It features a white roof, which in addition with complete concrete paving, assist it to reduce radiant heat by reflecting the sunlight, thereby reducing utility cost on air conditioning.
To further cutback power consumption, the building has energy-efficient light fixtures, occupancy sensors, high efficient HVAC systems, roof mounted up-blast exhaust fans and wall louvers. These initiatives make the scheme 45% more power-efficient than any comparable industrial buildings.
Attention was paid on making the building water-efficient as well. It features low-flow plumbing fixtures that reduce water use by 33%. The facility has an efficient rainwater harvesting system, which comprise retention ponds, which collects run-off water from the roof and paved areas and uses it for landscaping irrigation purposes. The new customer service facility offers efficient ventilation, which brings in 30% more fresh air.
During the construction, almost 85% of the waste was diverted from the landfills through recycle and reuse. Of the total construction materials, almost 44% were sourced from within 500 miles of the project site. Almost 70% of the building’s power requirement is being met by non-fossil energy, which further aids in protecting the environment.
Inside, the facility will use a centralised computer-based transportation system, which will automatically load the products on set truck, resulting in an efficient truck load, higher efficiency in shipments and fewer trucks on the road.
