Lidl Switzerland has teamed up with the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) on a joint project as it seeks to operate its branches even more sustainably and efficiently in the future.
The energy consumption and interaction of systems in existing branches will be analysed after which Empa researchers will develop an optimised programme for the branches of the future.
Together with Sympheny, Empa's spin-off, the team will examine the energy consumption and interaction of different systems, such as heating, ventilation and cooling, product refrigeration and freezers, photovoltaic systems and electric filling stations in existing Lidl locations.
The study will, on one hand, outline concrete optimisation measures that can be simply applied to existing branches and help reduce energy consumption and emissions.
On the other, by means of computer simulations, alternative energy systems are tested, such as an expansion of photovoltaics, the use of energy storage, or an optimised use of waste heat from freezers and ovens.
Emissions Reduction
With its ISO 50001 certification, Lidl Switzerland has been committed since 2014 to continuously optimising operations in its branches and promoting sustainable energy, thereby reducing CO2 emissions.
Since 2021, new stores are being built according to an innovative energy design and they are also sustainable in relation to building materials, energy consumption and technology.
The initiative has significant potential, as more than 140 Swiss branches of Lidl have the energy consumption of a medium-sized Swiss city.
© 2022 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest Retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
