The new 94,000 s/f Market Basket store located at the corner of Elm and West Auburn Sts. in downtown has been awarded LEED Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council and is displaying its new certification plaque in the store. The Market Basket is one of the first newly constructed supermarkets to achieve LEED certification in the state.
"We are proud to have the Manchester Market Basket store be one of the first environmentally friendly grocery stores in New Hampshire and one of the few to be LEED certified," said mayor Ted Gatsas. "It's a great accomplishment for the supermarket's development team and a terrific store for the residents of Manchester."
The new store was developed by RMD Inc. of Tewksbury, Mass. for Demoulas Super Markets Inc. and the MarketBasket stores; Pro Con Inc. was the general contractor for the project. Prellwitz/Chilinski Associates Inc of Cambridge, MA was the project architect.
Throughout the design and construction process, Demoulas and Pro Con took measures to reduce the Market Basket's energy use. The goal was to reduce the store's energy consumption and attain a 16% improvement in energy performance when compared to similar sized stores.
"Historically, super markets consume large amounts of energy due to the large amount of refrigeration required," said Dan Messier, senior vice president of Pro Con. "Demoulas Supermarkets wanted to have their newest store be environmentally friendly, so sustainable design practices were incorporated into each phase of design, construction and operation of the building."
Supermarket refrigeration systems traditionally use large amounts of energy to run because they cycle on and off, which allows humidity and frost to build up. By installing a desiccant dehumidification system in the new Market Basket store, excess humidity is removed from the air and the build-up of frost on the store's refrigeration systems is prevented. The desiccant system provides a drier, more comfortable store environment for shoppers, extends product shelf life, and reduces frost build up on frozen products and refrigerated cases, saving energy.
Other energy savings features the new store include; insulated windows that reduce heat transfer and increase the amount of natural daylight in the building, low flow plumbing fixtures that reduce water usage by 33%; energy efficient lighting throughout the interior of the store and exterior LED lighting fixtures controlled by photo sensors that automatically turn off lights at dawn and on at dusk; and a waste heat recovery system that captures waste heat from the refrigeration compressors and utilizes it to heat the building.
"The new store has been very well received by shoppers," said Michael Kettenbach of RMD. "It's great to be able to offer shoppers a positive shopping experience in an attractive, well-stocked store that is also environmentally friendly."
Shown holding Market Basket's LEED Certification plaque (from left) are: Dan Messier, SVP, Pro Con; Michael Kettenbach, RMD - Retail Management and Development; Ted Gatsas, mayor of Manchester; Ken Juthe, project manager, Pro Con; and Dennis Carpenito, assistant manager, Manchester Market Basket.