Texas Grocer Slashes Energy Use

RMI collaborated with H-E-B to design a new grocery store in Austin, Texas, targeting a 50% reduction in energy use and up to 80% reduction in water consumption through integrative design moves such as airlocks, daylighting, and high-efficiency refrigeration.

• In 2010, the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) collaborated with Texas grocery retailer H-E-B to develop a highly efficient design for a new store at Austin's former airport site. This design is expected to achieve 50 percent energy savings compared to the company's standard new store design.
• The energy efficiency of the new H-E-B store is driven by several integrative design moves, including an airlock design with vestibules and enhanced insulation, a lighting scheme utilizing daylight and LEDs, and a high-efficiency refrigeration and air conditioning system featuring chillers, cooling towers, and a radiant slab.
• Beyond energy, the store design incorporates water and waste efficiency strategies. These include reclaiming condensate for cooling towers, using high-performance domestic fixtures, eliminating seafood display ice, and implementing aggressive composting and recycling. Water efficiency measures could potentially reduce consumption by 80 percent.
• The collaboration between RMI and H-E-B utilized an innovation workshop, or 'charrette,' which served as a catalyst for H-E-B to apply these efficiency strategies across its existing store portfolio and other new locations.

APA

RMI (2012). Texas Grocer Slashes Energy Use. https://rmi.org/resources/texas_grocer_slashes_energy_use/

Chicago

RMI. Texas Grocer Slashes Energy Use. 2012. https://rmi.org/resources/texas_grocer_slashes_energy_use/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=Texas Grocer Slashes Energy Use |date=14 February 2012 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/texas_grocer_slashes_energy_use/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2012texas, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{Texas Grocer Slashes Energy Use}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2012}, month = feb, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/texas_grocer_slashes_energy_use/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }