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green notes By Jo Rossman, LEED AP ID+C, GPAP
Pressure on Suppliers to Go Green
A
few years ago, many retail environ­
ments suppliers put their sustain­
ability plans on the back burner to
concentrate on surviving the recession. But
that’s no longer an option for long-term
prosperity, or perhaps even for survival.
Pressure on suppliers to go green is increas­
ing; according to A.R.E.’s 2013 Green Building
Survey, 89 percent of respondents have been
asked for green products or sustainability
programs.
In just the one short year since A.R.E.
launched the annual survey in 2012, green
product requests have surged. Last year, 55
percent of industry suppliers had been asked
for products with specific sustainable attri­
butes such as recycled content or low VOCs.
This year, that number jumped to a whop­
ping 71 percent. An even larger jump was
seen in requests for products with ecolabels
such as GREENGUARD or FloorScore—from 38
percent last year to 57 percent this year.
While not as large an increase, requests for
information about processes also are grow­
ing. This year, 36 percent of suppliers were
asked not just about what’s in their building
products, but about how those products are
made—up from 26 percent last year. LEED
changes that highlight embodied energy
may be contributing to these requests (see
the article beginning on page 20). Nearly 18
percent of suppliers are even being asked for
corporate sustainability reports.
PRODUCTS PLENTIFUL,
PROMOTIONS NOT SO MUCH
For manufacturers and suppliers, meeting
that demand may entail talking up what
they already bring to the table. The vast
majority of A.R.E. member suppliers—around
90 percent in both years’ surveys—provide
some sort of sustainable products and/or
services already.
Material sourcing was clearly an issue last
year for suppliers that wanted to be involved
in green retail projects, with more than 65
percent ranking it as the most important or
second most important factor in their abil­
ity to participate in these projects. To get a
clearer picture of what suppliers are facing
this year, we asked suppliers how much they
agree that such sourcing is easy. Nearly a
third disagreed at least somewhat, suggest­
ing that while sustainable material sourcing
How green are suppliers expected to be?
Products with
specific material attributes
such as renewable materials,
recycled content, low-VOC, etc.
57%
Products carrying
environmentally related
product certifications
36 %
Information on the
vendor’s manufacturing
processes: Water consumption,
type of energy used,
scrap/offtail, etc.
Source: A.R.E. Sustainability Surveys, May 2013, conducted with retailers, designers, and suppliers
Last year, 55 percent of industry suppliers had been asked for products with specific sustainable
attri­butes such as recycled content or low VOCs. This year, that number jumped to a whopping
71 percent.
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nd13_47-48_greenNotes_final2.indd 47
Retailers rate the following as “extremely
important” or “very important”:
INITIAL COST
92%
RETURN ON INVESTMENT
85%
AVAILABILITY
85%
QUALITY OF VENDOR PRODUCT/SERVICE
85%
PRODUCT SCHEDULE
77%
CONSUMER PERCEPTION
62%
VENDOR LOCATION
39%
Retailers weigh in on the most important
elements of a sustainable project in
A.R.E.’s State of Sustainability Survey 2013.
Not sure whether a
product is ­sustainable?
Retailers and designers ask their suppliers for:
71 %
What makes the green decision?
Product Sustaina
bility Worksheet
These questions can
help you sort through
product, or material
the sustainability
of a fixture, visual
for a retail project.
merchandising
Specifiers, buyers,
a discussion with the
and resource librarians
supplier. Suppliers
can use
can use it to evaluate
their company’s products it to initiate
and strategies.
Material Content
ProduCtion ProCess
Y N
Is the product an assembly
(that
CertifiCation
Y N
is, more than one
Is the
product produced
material)?
using
Other than industrial
renewable energy?
scrap,
Y N
were any recycled
Does the plant produce
materials
any
used in the product?
energy on-site?
pre post Were
Y N
the materials recycled
Does the plant have
an Energy
consumer, post-consumer, preManagement System
in place?
does the product contain or
Y N
Does the plant use
both?
What percentage of
cogeneration?
the product
assembly by weight
Y N
do the
Does the plant use
any wasterecycled materials
comprise?
to-energy strategies?
Y N
Were any renewable
Y N
materials
Have any other energy-saving
used in the product?
measures been implemented
What is the harvest
at the plant?
cycle
the renewable materials? for
Y N
Has the plant been
able to
What percentage of
implement any water-saving
the product
by weight does the
measures?
renewable
material comprise?
Y N
Does the plant reuse
Y N
scrap,
Does the product contain
off-fall, or other byproducts
wood?
Y N
Do you have chain
of the production process?
of custody
Y N
certification for sustainable
Has the plant been
able
harvesting of the wood?
implement any other to
wasteWhat percentage of
reduction measures?
new wood
Y N
used in the product
Do the plant’s effluent
by weight
and
is certified?
emissions meet all
applicable
Y N
Does the product contain
regulations?
composite panels?
What kind of packing
material
Y N
Does it have added
is used to ship the
product?
urea
formaldehyde?
Y N
Does it comply with
CARB’s
life CyCle
Composite Wood Air
Toxic
Control Measure?
What is the expected
Y N
life span
Does the product contain
of the product?
adhesives, sealants,
Y N
paints,
Do you offer maintenance
coatings, or carpet?
tips to prolong the
product’s
Y N
Do you have information
durability?
on
the VOC emissions?
Y N
Has the product been
designed
for disassembly?
Y N
Are any product components
recyclable at the end
of their
useful life?
Y N
Are recycling facilities
This worksheet in
for these
available
components readily
download as an interactive for
available?
Y N
PDF
Will you take back
form through A.R.E.’s
any product
public
components at the
at www.retailenvironment library
end of their
s.org.
useful life?
(Search for “Product
Sustainability
Y N
Worksheet.”) Or go
Do you offer refurbishment
to http://tinyurl.com/
SustainabilityWorkshee
services for the product
t
to be
reused?
Y N
Has a life cycle assessment
been performed on
the product?
Y
N
What third-party environmental
product declarations
(EPDs),
certifications, or validations
apply to the product?
regionality
In the form of an inter­
active PDF, A.R.E.’s Product
Sustainability Work­sheet
offers a series of ques­
tions to help you sort out
the sustainability of a
fixture, visual merchandising product, or
material. Specifiers, buyers, and resource
librarians can use it to initiate a discussion
with the supplier. Suppliers can use it to
evaluate their companies’ products and
strategies.
Download the the Product Sustain­
ability Worksheet through A.R.E.’s pub­
lic library at www.retailenvironments.
org. (Search for “Product Sustainability
Worksheet” or go to http://tinyurl.com/
SustainabilityWorksheet.)
w w w.retailenvironment
JA12_18-21_sustainability_f
inal.indd 21
Y
N
Where is the plant
located?
Are other plant locations
available? Where?
Where did the materials
for
the product come
from?
Where were the raw
materials
mined or harvested?
Do you have documentation
for the product’s components
dating back to the
mining or
harvesting of the raw
materials?
CorPorate resPonsibilit
y
Y
N
Y
N
Do you make a corporate
responsibility report
available
to interested parties
annually?
Has your company’s
environmental and social
performance
been reviewed by
any third
parties?
s.org
| 21
6/26/12 4:32:46
AM
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11/11/13 11:18 PM
THE TAKEAWAYS FOR SUPPLIERS:
• H ave product sustainability data
available.
• Educate yourself about the new LEED
criteria for life cycle assessments.
• C onsider getting your products vetted
by an appropriate entity.
• P romote your company’s sustainable
efforts, using accurate wording in
your marketing collateral.
• B e prepared to provide information
about your operations.
• C onsider developing an annual
corporate sustainability report.
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nd13_47-48_greenNotes_final2.indd 48
challenges have not been completely eliminated, they do appear to be easing.
Despite anecdotal comments from
designers over the past few years about
the difficulties of obtaining proper documentation, both suppliers and designers
deemed paperwork the least of their worries last year. So this year, we wanted to see
if suppliers understand what designers want
from them for green projects; for the most
part, they do. More than 71 percent agreed
or somewhat agreed that they understand
both how their products affect LEED projects
and the documentation required of them.
Of course, the survey was conducted before
LEED v4, with its new materials data criteria. Now suppliers will need to re-educate
themselves.
Suppliers felt that they were weakest
in their promotional activities, with nearly
40 percent still not promoting their sustainability efforts at all, about the same as last
year. Of those who do promote their sustainable efforts, website and ads are the preferred vehicles, followed by press releases
and social media. Fewer than 11 percent of
responding companies have a f­ormal corporate sustainability report.
Jo Rossman, LEED AP
ID+C, GPAP, is manager
of sustainability and
designer programs for
the Association for
Retail Environments.
Contact her at jorossman
@retailenvironments.org or 954-241-4821.
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11/11/13 11:19 PM
A Collaborative Effort
Logistics, transportation, and installation providers are increasingly working
closely together to get stores open on time By Tracy Dillon
A
.R.E. recently brought together
executives of member companies
in a virtual roundtable to discuss
new developments—and new
challenges—in the areas of transportation,
logistics, and installation. One of the biggest changes the participating companies
identified is a move toward more integration of these back-end processes.
Says Brian Harvey, executive vice president of Axis Global Logistics, based in
Somerset, N.J., “We’re seeing the synergies
coming together from installation services,
from the fixture manufacturer, and the
transportation companies.”
In this type of collaboration, the installation company often takes the lead role in
organization and planning with the client,
says Mike Haddon, chief operating officer for Plymouth, Minn.-based American
Installation Companies. “We generally find
that retailers and fixture companies have a
Forecast for 2014
Twenty-six percent of retailers
forecast an increase in their
purchases of installation, logistics,
and transportation services for
2014. An additional 50 percent
expect purchases in this area to
remain steady with 2013.
—Source: A.R.E.’s Retail Survey, June 2013
preferred carrier. They look for us to partner with them, figure out the specifics of
the program, and coordinate the details.”
Adam Edwards, director of special projects for Prime Retail Services, based in
Flowery Branch, Ga., agrees. “We’re the
ones on the ground, reporting everything
back to the client.” In other cases, the fixture manufacturer may lead the project.
WILSON DISPLAY LTD., a fixture manufacturer based in
Mississauga, Ontario, not only engineered and manufactured the fixtures
for a 25,000-square-foot Hudson’s Bay Outlet store that debuted in August
in Toronto, but also handled delivery and installation on a tight timeline and
in challenging conditions. Wilson did much of the assembly at its facility,
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Some companies, such as McIntyre Group
Retail Services, based in Toronto and
Calgary, Alberta, Canada, bring all three
components together within one company.
“We do a significant amount of work for
U.S.-based installation companies who may
not have the resources here,” says Steve
Shepard, general manager of McIntyre.
The execution of an individual project
can vary depending on the size of a retailer
as well as the level of expertise of its staff.
For large projects with rollouts of thousands of units it’s not unusual for these
supplier companies to embed staff within
the retail organization. “It all starts in the
weekly construction meetings,” says Bob
Thomas, president of Jacksonville, Fla.based Suddath Global Logistics. “We sit
with their construction and permitting
teams every week to go over projected
stores, whether they are remodels or new
builds, the timeline, and the client tells
then transported the completed fixtures to the store “just in time” as Wilson
Display’s installation team needed them. The company coordinated deliveries
using two trucks—one full-sized that required access to the loading load, and a
second, smaller truck with a tailgate that could deliver to the front door when
construction and parking lot paving made it impossible to use the loading dock.
| 49
11/11/13 11:29 PM
us what fixture company we’ll be working
with and which installation company will
be handling each project.”
GETTING IT THERE JUST IN TIME
One new trend that’s transforming this
area of the industry is the need for multiple “just-in-time” deliveries throughout
the project, rather than one large delivery
direct from the manufacturer. Whether the
cause is less backroom storage space in the
store or landlord restrictions on storage
containers at the site, more retailers (especially in mall spaces), now need smaller
deliveries more often, containing just the
fixtures or materials to be installed for
that stage of the project. To meet this need,
logistics companies coordinate inbound
freight from multiple manufacturers, bring
it to split points or warehouses, and ensure
that everything has made the trip safely
with no damage, says Harvey. “Then we
maintain a perpetual inventory, provide
that through web portals, and coordinate
the installations with the installing company on a just-in-time basis.”
Adds Thomas, “That goes back to the
construction meetings—so everyone
knows what the contractor or installation
team needs, when they need it. Then the
next step is delivering the right product
exactly when it’s needed, whether that is
first thing in the morning or in the middle
of the night.”
Says Edwards, “We may not start work in
a store until 9 p.m. if it’s an open remodel
situation. Often our teams are unavailable
during normal business hours because they
worked the night before.” He notes that the
delivering drivers, who may be arriving
during normal working hours, may have
questions or need directions regarding
what, when, and where they are supposed
to be taking their shipments. “This scenario
can cause extra work for store teams or our
field crews if it is deemed that the delivery
company will not or cannot push to a later
delivery time,” Edwards says.
Night deliveries also offer complications
for the transportation companies, in this
case regulatory. “We do a lot of deliveries
late in the evening for access purposes, but
government regulations on hours of service limit the number of hours that a single
driver can be utilized that day,” says David
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nd13_49-52_transportation_final2.indd 50
3 TIPS
1 Designate a “non-retail team” to coordinate
make it critical for drivers to plan for the
ultimate delivery time. On a shipment
from Chicago to Dallas, for example, Mike
Omann, a sales executive with ATS Inc. of
St. Cloud, Minn., notes that the driver must
know what time he’s delivering in Dallas
before he makes the pickup in Chicago, “so
he can plan for the 11 p.m. delivery and not
run out of hours.” Electronic logging and
tracking/tracing devices ensure that regulations are met.
And when it comes to Manhattan deliveries, additional logistical challenges are
common. “Sometimes it seems like every
block has some sort of store construction
or road construction going on, so it’s not
always a clear delivery process with a loading dock,” says Harvey. “You have to be creative at times.”
2 Make sure the store is ready for deliveries.
INCREASING TRANSPARENCY
Making sure that, for example, the fixtures
don’t arrive before the carpet has been
laid means ensuring closer coordination
between all parties than ever before. Says
Pete Zishka, director of expedited sales for
Thomasville, N.C.-based Old Dominion
Freight Line, “Real-time visibility is key. If
you’re doing two or three thousand rollouts
in a three-day window, no one wants to
have to make phone calls to make sure that
everything got there.”
Closer coordination between the transportation, logistics, and installation companies typically brings all of the details
together in one central location. Though a
web- or cloud-based portal, the retail client
can now typically see photos, schedules,
documentation including certificates of
insurance, store checklists, quality control
forms, and more.
“Most companies with sensitive commodities require inventory shipment that
provides both shipment and piece-level
detail,” says Teresa Wilcox of Fort Wayne,
Ind.-based STI. Through a web interface,
STI deploys a customer product management system that can manage both materials and finished goods, keeping track of
each piece component and its place in the
supply chain.
With systems like these, all partners
involved in a project can see what inventory
was transferred on what date. “There is a
clear audit trail of specific articles getting
the project rather than relying on the store’s
internal or external merchandise teams. Says
Pete Zishka of Old Dominion Freight Line, “The
projects that go the smoothest are those with
retailers who differentiate non-­retail from their
normal retail business.” While retailers are
highly skilled at getting merchandise to their
stores, it’s important to realize that getting
­fixtures to the store in good shape requires
­different processes, including an understanding
of installation, logistics, and construction schedule. Says David Coulter of AWG Logistics, “Pool
point distributors are excellent at dealing with
shoes, garments on hangers, and other merchandise, but when you send in a square box
on a pallet with fixtures and glass, it doesn’t
tend to end happily.”
Says Mike Haddon of Ameri­can Installation
Companies, “Our biggest challenge is getting
the retailer or the construction representative
to under­stand that when we get there—and
the transportation arrives—we are going to
work seamlessly to unload, place, and install.
But we can only do our jobs if those jobs that
have to be completed before us are done on
schedule.”
3 Understand the “rules of engage­ment” for
each project and each location. Brian Harvey of
Axis Global Logistics notes that upfront plan­
ning with the installation company or general
contractor on-site can identify the challenges
long before the driver shows up with a truck
and isn’t allowed on the site. “For example,
union versus non-union is always a challenge in
New York,” he says.
Coulter, vice president of sales for Atlas Van
Lines, Specialized Transportation Group,
based in Evansville, Ind. Coulter suggests
that instead of direct-delivering from the
truck on which the products were originally loaded, the fixtures can be placed in a
warehouse and delivered by a second truck
whenever they are needed. “But now you’ve
rehandled the fixtures again, taking them
from one truck and placing them back,
which adds cost,” he says.
For longer-haul transportation companies, like ATS, hours of service regulations
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11/11/13 11:29 PM
to the store,” says Harvey. “And at the same
time, we can all see how each company is
affecting the others. This helps us work in
concert to open the doors on time.”
Zishka cites this type of “virtual ware­
housing” as an important way to keep
track of projects, particularly with those
that merge multiple vendors into the same
deliveries. “This helps us put everything
together and get it out to the client in the
order that they want it,” he says.
Clark, owner of Afton, Okla.-based Phalanx
Strategies. “Many of them struggle with
visibility of the shipment once it is under
voyage,” he says. Phalanx offers tracking
and tracing through the company’s trans­
portation management software.
Many companies also make use of free
technology tools. Edwards cites Google
Earth and Google Maps as tools to assist
both in planning and in solving last-­
minute problems, such as when a driver
near the delivery point can’t make a turn.
Similarly, Suddath maps every delivery
using Google early on in the project. “When
we get a driver on the phone who has run
into problems, we can pull up the map and
identify ways to get around the obstacle,”
says Thomas.
REAL-TIME COMMUNICATION
Investment in technology, primarily aimed
at improving communications and infor­
mation sharing between clients, manu­
facturers, and their service providers, is
ongoing for these companies. Haddon says
that installation companies are now pro­
viding much of the project management
that historically had been performed by
the fixture manufacturer. His company,
American Installation Companies, has
equipped lead installers with iPads or sim­
ilar devices, making it possible to upload
pictures, proof of delivery, and other docu­
mentation to a website immediately from
the site.
Similarly, ATS, based in St. Cloud, Minn.,
recently started adding scanning units
to each of its trucks. “This lets us provide
proof of delivery from the driver, who can
scan the documents on-site from his trac­
tor. Once in our internal imaging, we can
shoot them out to the installation crew, the
customer, and the fixture manufacturer,”
says Omann.
The posting of real-time images from the
job site provides more than simple proof of
delivery or installation. “Posting images to
a site where everyone on the team can see
them also shows the number of pieces, con­
dition, and many details,” says Coulter.
Axis Global recently instituted a ­sensorbased logistics program that allows the
company to install a tracking device for
extremely valuable or time-sensitive deliv­
eries. Harvey says that the sensor tracks
the movement of freight using geo-­fencing
technology and can track the location of
the product as well as detect breaches of
security and changes in temperature, baro­
metric pressure, and humidity.
Communication challenges can be mag­
nified in international projects, notes Ken
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nd13_49-52_transportation_final2.indd 51
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11/11/13 11:29 PM
Aire-Ride Transfer Inc.
Centrek Distribution Services
Installations Northwest
Prime Retail Services Inc.
Manasquan, N.J.
Mendota Heights, Minn.
Graham, Wash.
Flowery Branch, Ga.
member companies that focus
AJ Logistics Inc.
www.ajlog.com
Iprole Inc.:
Retail Installation Services
Prodigy Retail Construction Inc.
primarily on providing transpor-
Champion Logistics Group:
Corporate Headquarters
Northlake, Ill.
Anaheim, Calif.
DAVACO Headquarters
LEGACY Retail Services
Dallas
Cherry Hill, N.J.
Dynamic Resources Inc.
McIntyre Group
Retail Services (Canada)
RESOURCES
The following include A.R.E.
tation, logistics, and installation
services to clients including
www.aireride.com
Fort Wayne, Ind.
Amer Trans Logistics Inc.
retailers, service retailers, and/or
Elk Grove Village, Ill.
amertranslogistics.com
providers of retail environments
American Installation Companies
products. In addition to those on
Plymouth, Minn.
this list, many manufacturers of
fixture and retail environments
www.americaninstallation
companies.com
www.centrekds.com
www.installationsnw.com
www.championlogisticsgroup.com
www.davacoinc.com
www.legacyrts.com
New York
www.driglobal.com
Ayr, Ontario, Canada
ATS Inc.
Flexecution
St. Cloud, Minn.
tation and installation services
www.atsvans.com/pad-wrap.html
Manchester, N.H.
through their own companies.
AWG Logistics
Four Points Installations Inc.
For more detailed information
Evansville, Ind.
www.awglogistics.com
Melville, N.Y.
Axis Global Logistics
Granger Contracting
| N-STORE Services
products also provide transpor-
on these or other companies,
see A.R.E.’s printed Supplier|
Somerset, N.J.
Connect Buyers’ Guide, or
www.axisg.com
use the online search at
Bay & Bay Transfer Co. Inc.
www.retailenvironments.org.
Rosemount, Minn.
www.bayandbay.com
The Beam Team Inc.
Alpharetta, Ga.
www.thebeamteam.com
Brofort Inc.
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
www.brofort.com
Axis Install ad_Layout 1 10/16/13 8:54 AM Page 3
www.flexecutioninc.com
Elk Grove Village, Ill.
www.mleinc.com
Thomasville, N.C.
New York
www.groundforceina.com
The Install Group Inc.
Lexington, Ky.
www.theinstallgroup.com
Installation Solutions Inc.
New Jersey, N.J.
www.shipstc.com
STI
Fort Wayne, Ind.
www.stidelivers.com
www.suddathlogistics.com
Old Dominion Freight Line Inc.
GroundForce INA
STC Logistics
MLE Merchandising &
Sign Solutions Inc.
www.nationwideretailservices.com
www.gnhservices.com
www.prodigyretail.com
Suddath Global Logistics LLC
Southlake, Texas
Chesterfield, Mo.
Toronto
www.mcintyregrp.com
Nationwide Retail Services
www.4pointsinc.com
Brooklyn Park, Minn.
www.iprole.com
www.primeretailservices.com
Jacksonville, Fla.
Summit Group
New Albany, Ind.
www.summitgroupinstallations.com
Thomas-Grace Construction Inc.
Stillwater, Minn.
www.thomas-grace.com
Titan Global Distribution Inc.
www.odfl.com/index.shtml
St. Louis
Dave Osborne
Construction Contracting Inc.
Trinity Express Inc.
www.titan-global.com
Plymouth, Minn.
Lewisville, Texas
www.docc-usa.com
www.trinityexpress.com
Precision Store Works
UniGroup Logistics
Epsom, N.H.
www.precisionstoreworks.com
Fenton, Mo.
www.unigrouplogistics.com
www.installationsolutionsinc.com
Your Doors
Won’t Open By
Themselves
You Need the Right Logistics Partner... You Need Axis Global Logistics
Retail industry executives know that when it comes to new
store set-ups, remodels, resets and event installations –
logistics plays a critical role in ensuring that their doors open
on-time and their merchandise is ready for sale.
It is this seamless, one provider approach – which is
built on industry-leading technology, global capabilities
and unmatched personal service – that truly sets an Axis
solution apart.
That’s why retailers are increasingly turning to
Axis Global Logistics’ Retail Installation Services.
They understand that Axis’ single-source, technology based
supply chain solution offers them the fastest, most reliable
service available – one that optimizes costs and efficiencies
E T A I L E N V I Rtheir
O N M Esupply
N T S n o vchain.
e m b e r. d e c e m b e r. 2 0 1 3
52 | Rthroughout
nd13_49-52_transportation_final2.indd 52
Delivering Solutions to Your Retail Supply Chain
Sales Inquiries: 800-568-4901 • E: sales@axisg.com
W: www.axisg.comw w w.retailenvironments.org
11/11/13 11:30 PM