The Sainsburys Millennium Store in Greenwich was conceived as a model ecological scheme for the second largest trading concern in Britain. The project gave the supermarket an opportunity to flaunt its green credentials and test the application of low energy environmental design techniques with a relatively untested building type.
Located between Greenwich and the Millennium development, the supermarket was built to serve the ever more environmentally conscious shopper and created over 300 jobs for the local area. The site was made accessible to pedestrians, cyclists and public transport. A dedicated cycle lane was created leading to the front of both the supermarket and the non-food retail development, linking into Bugsby's Way and the rest of the proposed development, on the Greenwich Peninsula. The planners also consulted with London Transport and the London Borough of Greenwich about diverting newly planned bus services through the site, some of which stop close to the store entrance.
The architect and retailers aim was to transform an industrial wasteland area into a 21st century example of sustainable design, not only in technological and environmental terms, but also sociological. Commenting on the design process, Dino Adriano, Chief Executive of J Sainsbury plc said, "This truly exceptional building is an investment in our future and the environment. We gave the architects and environmental consultants a blank sheet of paper and a brief to revolutionise supermarket design."Chetwood Associates were the chosen architects with experience working on previous projects with the supermarket. Their portfolio has tended to define the practice as a specialist in functional or 'shed' architecture, but the contract for the Millennium store gave them an opportunity to make design a priority over budgets and deadlines.
The Millennium Store is the result of two years of painstaking research by the architects into reducing energy consumption in supermarkets. The design includes a passive ventilation system, natural lighting, and a combined heat and power plant. All of which helped to reduce the energy needs to only half of a comparable supermarket in conventional conditions.
Project architect Paul Hinklin said "This building is the culmination of ideas that were generated by a complete review of supermarket design commissioned by Sainsbury's in 1995. We have used the natural flows of energy within the environment to produce an energy efficient, breathing store. By removing air conditioning and using natural light we have created a natural environment."
The overall cost of the scheme was £13 million, £7 million more expensive than a conventionally designed supermarket of similar size however the long term savings are offset by the saving in energy and maintenance costs. It managed to achieve an 'excellent' rating on the BREEAM assessment, and lays claims to be the most energy efficient supermarket ever built. It was also shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling Prize in 2000, voted into the finals by the public.
However, there have been claims of greenwashing through the implementation of large wind driven turbines at the stores entrance which and solar panels which are used only to illuminate the stores huge energy guzzling signs at night. They are both used as a means to fix an artificial problem (i.e. the large advertising).
The store was designed in conjunction with the Millennium development, and pioneered the rejuvenation of the area. It attempted to change people's habits in terms of thinking more responsibly about their footprint and concepts of 'food miles', i.e. how far does food travel before its shelf life in a supermarket. The new development was also partnered with the elimination of GM foods from all Sainsbury’s branded products with the aim of strengthening their reputation as the leading 'green' supermarket in the eyes of the public with the intention of gaining consumer trust. Although the company's own agenda was more to do with projecting the appearance of a green building they did give the architects and planners in their employment an opportunity to produce something that could become a flagship for energy efficient supermarket design.
During the design process, an exhibition was held at Trafalgar Road in London in 1998, which allowed the public to express their opinions about the design and also to voice any possible amendments/ideas. This public engagement ensured that the project was welcomed as a positive contribution to the local community and any issues about the design were resolved before building commenced.
