LEROY MERLIN France inaugurates in Perpignan its first referenced store meeting all BBC criteria without energy compensation

As for the Perpignan store, all preliminary work performed on the building design, and based on the High Environmental Quality (HEQ) approach, will set the stage to satisfy the "BBC" criteria without even having to produce photovoltaic energy.

The building itself, which complies with bioclimatic design principles, is well integrated into its environment: the store facade open onto the pedestrian promenade was partially covered with vegetation. A 6.65-meter high landscaped bund wall significantly lessened the store's visual impact on its periphery, and for the storage zones in particular. All project subcontractors signed the " Green Building" charter, which is the most commonly used document for defining a jobsite's environmental operating rules.

The materials used for the building's joinery and insulation yielded a building shell performance 32% greater than current thermal regulations, through minimizing thermal bridges. The thickness of insulation materials reached as high as 210 mm. The store's window panes are treated, offering a 79% reduction in calorific contributions. Heating facilities allowed lowering energy consumption by 56% compared to a standard RT 2005-compliant store. The Perpignan outlet consumes half the energy of a conventional store when being cooled. The materials chosen account for a much smaller health-related impact: a minimum VOC emission threshold for these materials was in fact established.

The store's ventilation system was set up around an air compressor package responsible for blowing fresh air at the same time as recycling ambient air, thus making it possible to conserve calories from the ambient air and then mixing this air with fresh air. Utility systems with controlled consumption of both water and energy used for heating and lighting were also introduced. Moreover, natural lightingis being reused thanks to a structure containing sheds.

The building roof was designed to ultimately accommodate the installation of 6,000 m2 of photovoltaic panels. Once operational, the Perpignan photovoltaic unit will produce 940 MWh/year, i.e. the equivalent of 140% of the store's conventional consumption. The store will therefore qualify as energy positive and, as such, will offer a service recharging parked electric vehicles by means of a terminal located on the parking lot.

Perpignan thus becomes Leroy Merlin France's reference store location and lays the groundwork for all future points of sale. This store design provides a blueprint for future outlets and will stimulate the renovation of existing stores throughout France.