Whole Foods Market is working with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) on a retrofit and a new construction CBP project. This case study is a snapshot of the progress to date of the Whole Foods Market CBP new construction project in Raleigh, North Carolina. It describes the successes and challenges of working collaboratively and using strategies and technologies that meet Whole Foods Market’s business criteria to dramatically reduce energy consumption. The new Raleigh store is currently under construction, and is expected to be completed in the spring of 2011.
This case study demonstrates the value of the project to Whole Foods Market, the degree to which the involvement of members of NREL’s Commercial Buildings Research Group helped stretch the team’s thinking about how to reduce energy consumption, and the lessons learned that are useful to the broader food sales industry. These lessons will be shared among members of the Commercial Building Energy Alliances (DOE 2010a) as well as with other interested commercial building professionals.