Within days of its official inauguration, du's second largest Signature Shop was awarded a LEED Platinum certification, scoring 85 out of a possible 110 points to make it the UAE's greenest telecom retail outlet. This is the third du Shop to have achieved LEED Platinum certification, following in the footsteps of the company's Fujairah and Mirdiff City Centre retail outlets.
du now saves over 250,000 kilowatts of energy at its three LEED Platinum Certified stores, saving the company over AED100,000 per year in terms of energy spending. What this translates into for the company is reduced OPEX, and an improvement in sustainability initiatives. In addition to being environmentally-conscious in its design and construction, the du Shop at Me'aisem City Center is also designed with customer experience in mind to make transactions both efficient and convenient.
Abdulhadi Alalyak, Senior Vice President - Corporate Services du, said: "Our newest du Shop is the embodiment of our commitment to adding life to life through services that bring more convenience, while adhering to our sustainability values. It sets an example of the possibilities of bringing sustainability into retail, raising the bar in terms of enhancing customer experience. The launch of our second LEED Platinum certified Shop is in line with our support of the UAE leadership's vision of a more sustainable future for the UAE."
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification is bestowed upon buildings that employ best-in-class building strategies and practices. du's newest Signature Shop is located in Me'aisem City Centre, which is LEED Platimum certified.
The Me'aisem City Centre Signature Shop was designed by using sustainable features incorporated throughout its design which include:
- 100% lights controlled by motion sensors
- 100% Energy Star rated equipment
- 90% construction waste was saved from being diverted to landfill
- 57% furniture and furnishings are re-used
- Lighting power reduced by 44%
- 21% recycled materials
- 32% regionally manufactured and 19% regionally harvested and manufactured materials
- Water use reduction by 55%
- Indoor air quality monitoring system
- High quality indoor environment for occupants using low-emitting adhesives, paints, flooring and wood
- HVAC equipment are efficient with appropriate zoning and controls
- Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) of 28,736 KWh provided for green power.
- Store is located in LEED Platinum Certified Mall
du has a strong commitment to sustainability, and has implemented initiatives across its business to achieve its sustainable goals. These include the installation of hybrid energy solutions in its mobile signal towers to cut back on fossil fuel consumption and carbon emissions; e-billing to reduce paper consumption, and a suite of innovative offerings that create social and environmental value, such as enabling easier communication for UAE's expatriate labour workforce, cloud services for lower costs and increased efficiency and more.
