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    Transparency “one of the biggest beasts that we battle” says Apple retail sustainability lead

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    Apple is pushing for carbon transparency in the supply chain as it aims to reduce the impact of its stores, claims the tech company’s retail sustainability lead Rebecca Cully in this interview.

    Created as the latest “evolution of the Apple Store”, Apple’s recently opened location in Battersea includes several material innovations aimed at reducing the shop’s carbon impact. These were sourced with transparency in mind, according to Cully.
    “That transparency piece is one of the biggest beasts that we battle on a regular basis,” she told Dezeen.
    “I think that’s a big reason why finding the right partners, not only in the design space but the construction space and the entire value chain, is just so critical.”
    Apple seeking partners “absolutely committed to transparency”

    Cully explained that Apple is seeking a commitment to transparency from all its construction partners as it aims to meet the company’s wider commitment of becoming carbon neutral by 2030, which will mean not only reducing the impact of its stores, but also its products.
    “There’s so many brilliant products out there in the world, and so many incredible companies that are doing some really interesting things, but as far as innovation is concerned, if we can’t identify a partner who’s absolutely committed to transparency it’s a no-go,” said Cully.
    The Battersea Apple Store incorporated new floor materials and roof bafflesApple is working on building record-keeping of impact and transparency into all its contracts. However, Cully acknowledged that evaluating the full of the impact of all components and materials in its stores is still not possible.
    “Evaluating products by manufacturer for carbon is still very early,” she said. “And so contractually obligating our supply chain manufacturers to disclose that information as a result of award is certainly something that we are focused on right now.”
    “The entire store? I think that’s a little ambitious right now, based on where industry is at,” she continued. “Frankly, we have not gotten to the point where we’re able to control that entire supply chain.”
    “You have to prioritise. For instance, the the nuts and bolts that go into the store are not as significant as our avenues and our ceilings.”
    “Industry is pretty slow to move”
    The recently opened Battersea store, along with the reopened Tysons Corner store in the USA, are the first to use an updated set of fixtures and fittings that will be rolled out across other stores.
    These include a timber framework for its walls and room dividers, flooring bound with a bio-polymer and acoustic baffles made from biogenic material.
    “These are very visible, very large components within the store that we knew if we focused on in the original design intent were going to result in a superior outcome from a carbon perspective,” said Cully.
    The store is the latest “evolution” of Apple’s retail designs.Apple’s current strategy with its stores is to focus on the most impactful, often physically largest areas that have traditionally been the most carbon-intensive.
    “So it’s really important that we are giving clear instructions to the folks that are sourcing for us to achieve particular outcomes,” said Cully.
    “That being said, the industry is pretty slow to move in a lot of these cases. So I would say that we are targeting certain elements within the store that are traditionally very high-carbon and very resource-stressed.”
    “We are targeting those manufacturers to make sure that they understand there is an obligation to deliver on transparency that is absolutely accurate.”

    Apple reveals Battersea Power Station store as latest “evolution of the Apple Store”

    Cully also highlighted that one major way that the carbon impact was reduced at its Battersea store was the decision to locate within the redevelopment of Battersea Power Station.
    Along with the Apple Store within the former turbine hall, the technology company has placed its UK offices within the former power station.
    “Partnering on a redevelopment project of a brownfield site in and of itself has a tremendous value from the standpoint of carbon emissions avoided as a result of the existing structure,” said Cully.
    “Certainly the partnership that we have with the landlord, was highly strategic in terms of positioning Apple to locate and operate as environmentally considerate as we possibly could.”
    Apple “certainly interested in pushing industry”
    According to Cully, Apple wants to push the construction industry to be more sustainable and noted that the company’s vice president of environment, policy and social initiatives, Lisa Jackson, has said she “intends to create a playbook that other organisations can follow”.
    “We are certainly interested in pushing industry,” said Cully. “And because of scale, we have an ability to do that and hopefully pave the way to make it a little bit easier for other companies to follow suit – or at least start normalising conversations with manufacturers and industries so that you know, these things become a little bit easier or a little bit more cost effective for other folks to follow suit.”
    “There are a few organisations around the world, I think, that have the ability to invest in this space the way we have, because the market just doesn’t exist.”
    In the past Apple stores have been focused on aesthetics, but Cully believes that the refocus on sustainability and accessibility means the shops align closer with the brand’s values.
    “This evolution of the store is so much more intrinsically linked to our values – it really is approaching the epitome of Apple’s values realised through the retail store space,” said Cully.
    “We have evolved the store from kind of looking like a product, to now fully representing our values in every way that we can, within the context of the built environment itself.”
    However, store fit-outs are far from being Apple’s biggest challenge in the race for carbon neutrality. Currently, 65 per cent of the company’s emissions from its products so this thinking will also need to be replicated in it production supply chains.
    The first Apple Store opened in 2001 and there are now more than 500 around the world. Dezeen recently rounded up 10 of the latest to open.
    The photography is courtesy of Apple.
    Dezeen In Depth
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      Elly Ward designs own restaurant Edit using salvaged terracotta tiles and reclaimed materials

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      Architect and restauranteur Elly Ward has opened the low-impact restaurant Edit in London, drawing inspiration from its vegan, minimal-waste menu to create an interior filled with reused and recycled materials.

      Ward collaborated with her husband Joe Morris of architecture studio Morris + Company on the project, which was designed using low-intervention methods.
      “It’s been designed to be as circular as possible, which is the whole philosophy of the restaurant,” she told Dezeen.
      The Edit restaurant features exposed brick wallsEdit is located in a former factory and warehouse building in east London and connected to the adjacent Morris + Company architecture office.
      Visitors to the restaurant can view the studio’s models through a large glass door, adding a decorative touch to the space.

      This door and a window into the office were two of the main changes Ward made to the existing space, which she has transformed using recycled and reclaimed materials.
      A window connects the interior with the adjacent architecture studioThe building’s brick walls – including a former exterior wall that still features old advertising text – were retained alongside the warehouse’s cast-iron columns and beams, forming the structural fabric of the 197-square-metre restaurant.
      Ward added lightweight screen partitions that slot between the existing structures, including a wall made from wood and recycled polycarbonate that divides the main dining area from a smaller private dining room.
      A polycarbonate screen with wood shelving divides the spaceA warm red floor, made from screed topped with a water-based resin, matches the floor in the architecture office next door and contrasts the textured brick wall that Ward and Morris painstakingly unveiled from underneath layers of paint.
      At the rear of the space, the duo clad a wall in salvaged maroon terracotta tiles, which merge into the bar counter. These were among the many recycled materials that Ward used for the project.
      “I call them my wonky tiles because they’re like the wonky fruit and wonky veg of the industry that gets thrown away because it’s not a perfect carrot,” she said.
      Elly Ward filled the restaurant with vintage furnitureThe architect also reused the copper from an existing bar in the restaurant, which now clads the sinks in the bathroom.
      “It’s all about diverting waste from waste streams,” Ward said.

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      “When you’re building something new, you have to get things,” she added. “If you can’t buy recycled or reclaimed, you have to look for renewable materials, things that would have otherwise gone to waste but you’ve made into something else.”
      “It’s almost a checklist of ‘how circular can you be?'”
      A red floor creates a warm atmosphereWard also sourced vintage Scandinavian school chairs to provide seating in the restaurant and complemented them with her grandparents’ wooden chairs and vintage Ercol seats.
      The accompanying tables have tops made by British company Foresso using waste wood chips set in a plant-based resin, creating an effect similar to wooden terrazzo and adding textural interest to the room.
      The tabletops are made from recycled wood and resinThe lighting in the space was handmade by British artist Peter Lanyon using wood salvaged from trees that were trimmed back in a local woodland in Devon. Pieces include a “chandelier” made from a piece of hazelwood with hanging lampshades made from cherrywood veneer.
      Throughout the restaurant, the colour palette adds a sense of warmth. While the main room has a red hue, Ward chose a calming green colour for the smaller private dining room.
      Lamps made from wood decorate the private dining room”We started with the red; it’s obviously such a strong colour,” Ward said. “I’m somebody who’s quite into colour and I’m not really afraid of it but I didn’t want it to be a ‘pop’ kind of place.”
      In the bathroom, the red hue is tempered by the decorative natural cork that clads the walls in both the main space and the toilet cubicles.
      “It’s all waterproof and actually really good for humid, damp environments and you can wipe it clean,” Ward said.
      Restaurant guests can admire architectural models while they eatTo Ward, there’s a connection between the food and architecture industries that she wanted to underline in Edit’s design.
      “I did a deep dive into the food industry and found out a lot of stuff about provenance and how a lot of the things we’re looking at in the architecture world about circularity and sustainability are kind of echoed in the food industry,” she said.
      “I wanted the design to match that philosophy.”
      Other vegan restaurants with decorative interiors include Humble Pizza by Child Studios in London and Sydney vegan cafe Gumbuya.
      The photography is by Jack Hobhouse.

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      Finnish Design Shop creates forest-set logistics centre to enable “a more sustainable future”

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      Avanto Architects and Joanna Laajisto have designed a logistics centre for retailer Finnish Design Shop that features warm timber, a foraged-food restaurant for staff and visitors, and views of the surrounding forest.

      Located on the outskirts of Turku, west of Helsinki, the logistics centre is the hub for storage, management and dispatch of products from the Finnish Design Shop, which says it is the world’s largest online store for Nordic design.
      The company needed a new logistics centre after a period of high growth, but founder and CEO Teemu Kiiski also aimed for it to be a meaningful place for employees and visitors.
      The Finnish Design Shop logistics centre is located in the Pomponrahka nature reserve in Turku. Photo is by KuvioEmployees of the logistics centre can enjoy plenty of light and forest views as well as warm timber environments and a restaurant run by Sami Tallberg, an award-winning chef who specialises in foraging.
      The Finnish Design Shop had first explored whether it could convert an existing building in the Turku area, but, finding nothing suitable, chose to build on a site in the Pomponrahka nature reserve, where the surrounding forest would provide a calming work environment and reflect the appreciation for wood in Nordic design.

      To undertake construction there responsibly, the Finnish Design Shop says the builders saved as many trees as possible and landscaped the area with natural forest undergrowth and stones excavated from the site.
      The entrance features glass curtain walls that connect the interior and exterior. Photo by KuvioAvanto Architects designed the 12,000-square-metre building to blend into the forest as much as possible — a challenge given its massing, a product of the warehouse layout.
      The layout was created beforehand by specialist consultants to maximise the efficiency of operations, which are carried out by robots in an automated system.
      The centre includes a showroom. Photo by Mikko RyhänenThe architects opted for a dark facade with a vertical relief pattern that becomes visible on approach and echoes the tree trunks in the surrounding woodlands.
      “The pattern forms a more human scale to the large facade surfaces,” Avanto Architects co-founder Anu Puustinen told Dezeen. “We also used warm wooden accents in the main entrance vestibule, balcony and windows.”
      There is also a restaurant that specialises in foraged food. Photo by Mikko RyhänenThe architects gave the office spaces large windows so the employees could enjoy frequent views of the forest and lots of light, and included a balcony for access to the outdoors on the first floor.
      The entrance to the centre is through the showroom, which features glass curtain walls that showcase the use of the building and a long, straight staircase made from two massive glulam beams.
      The first-floor offices have a view of the warehouse floor. Photo by KuvioThe interior was designed by Laajisto and her studio, who aimed to make the space feel well-proportioned and comfortable despite its size and to create a good acoustic environment by liberally applying sound-absorbing materials.
      She kept the colour and material palette neutral and natural, with lots of solid pine and ash wood to continue the forest connection, but used furniture from the Finnish Design Shop in bright colours to punctuate the space.

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      “The aim was that every aspect in the interior should be done well and beautifully,” Laajisto told Dezeen. “Attention to detail was embraced in things that typically are overlooked, such as doors, plumbing fixtures and electrical hardware selections and applications, acoustic ceiling panels and ceramic tiles.”
      The project is the first logistics building in Finland to be certified BREEAM Excellent, the second highest level.
      Special attention has been paid to creating a good acoustic environment with sound-dampening materials. Photo by Mikko RyhänenKiiski, who positions the company as the opposite of multinational e-commerce players such as Amazon, aimed for the new centre to be the most socially and environmentally sustainable online store.
      “The values that life in the Nordic countries is based on include transparency, equality and respect for nature,” said Kiiski. “It would have been impossible to create this company and our new logistics centre without unwavering respect for these values.”
      Wood is featured throughout the interiorHe believes that global online shopping can be socially and environmentally sustainable when issues in supply chains, logistics and operations are addressed.
      “Many studies show that online shopping can have a lower carbon footprint as compared to in-store shopping,” said Kiiski. “This is due to the more efficient logistics in e-commerce and the fact that in-store shopping usually involves private transport.”
      “We want to push the whole industry towards a more sustainable future,” he continued.
      The hub is meant to offer employees a healthy and humane working environment. Photo by Mikko RyhänenPast work by Avanto Architects includes the Löyly waterfront sauna in Helsinki, which has a multifaceted exterior that visitors can climb, and the Villa Lumi, a house with a sculptural white staircase.
      Laajisto’s previous projects include office interiors for service design company Fjord and the Airisto furniture collection for Made by Choice, which was inspired by Scandinavian holiday culture.

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      Copenhagen Architecture Festival exhibition responds to “ridiculous” big-budget building projects

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      An exhibition in Copenhagen showcases work by students who were instructed to develop projects for extreme environments in order to come up with original design solutions not influenced by “castle in the sky” builds and architecture blogs.

      Named New Methods for Big Challenges: Architecture and Extreme Environments, the exhibition was commissioned for this year’s ongoing Copenhagen Architecture Festival (CAFx).
      It was curated by David Garcia, founder of local studio MAP Architects and an associate professor at the Royal Danish Academy’s architecture and technology institute, where he teaches a masters course titled Architecture and Extreme Environments.
      The exhibition is being held at Halmtorvet 27 in Copenhagen’s Meatpacking DistrictThe exhibition showcases the result of students’ work on the programme, which sees them live and work for weeks in harsh locations such as Alaska and the Gobi Desert.
      There they must seek to build and test design prototypes that benefit the communities living in these challenging environments by harnessing the resources available and collaborating with local people.

      Garcia said the aim of the course, as well as responding to climate change, is to give the students no choice but to produce original architecture – without the temptation to copy what they see online.
      “I wanted to make my students start in a very difficult place where there is no precedent, pushing them to an extreme context so they have to think anew,” he told Dezeen.
      “It’s partly based on the idea that it’s hard for students to separate themselves from the images they see on the architecture blogs. These websites have an enormous impact on students, who crave inspiration, but it can be overwhelming as there is so much readily available.”
      Garcia said the idea for the masters course was based on his time making “ridiculous” projects at a large British architecture firmHe added that his own experience working on big-budget projects for rich clients while at major British architecture firm Foster + Partners was behind the conception of the course.
      “I spent many years designing castles in the sky and that was pivotal in coming up with this programme,” he said.
      “I realised that from a resource perspective, and from the point of view of solving the world’s problems it was ridiculous. I’m extremely critical of those types of projects despite having worked on them myself in the past.”

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      The exhibition starts with blown-up versions of pamphlets produced by MAP Architects exploring concepts for architecture in places like Antarctica, Chernobyl, or the Earth’s orbit.
      For instance, one pamphlet suggests that Antarctica’s constant extreme cold be used to cool seeds in a World Seed Bank, as an alternative to the centre in the Arctic’s Svalbard where air conditioning is sometimes required due to temperature fluctuation.
      Among the projects featured in the main exhibition is a desalination device produced by a student placed with an Inuit community in the Bering Strait, where only saltwater is readily accessible.
      Projects were developed in locations like Alaska, the Gobi Desert and the Atacama DesertThe student’s research uncovered that thawing saltwater ice initially produces drinkable water, as this melts faster than saline.
      Via a series of tubes and chambers, the device takes a block of saltwater ice and transforms it into a glass of fresh water overnight that can be drunk in the morning.
      Meanwhile, the orange Inxect suit by Pavel Liepins aims to tackle issues of plastic pollution and food security in the Faroe Islands.
      It channels body heat and humidity generated by movement into an attached habitat for plastic-eating mealworms, which are non-toxic to humans and rich in protein.
      Students were encouraged to think originally about ways they could respond to the challenges of harsh environmentsSome exhibits play with materials, such as an insulation product made out of pine needles by a student placed in Alaska and a method for creating bricks from sand by a student sent to China’s Gobi Desert by Gabriele Jerosine.
      Not all the projects worked successfully, including a device intended to wrap around the stilts of houses in flood-prone Manaus, Brazil, to produce tidal energy, which proved to be overcomplicated and too fragile to function.
      “Personally I don’t care whether their experiments work or not, and I don’t have a specific aesthetic that I look for; that’s not as relevant to me, I’d like the students to explore their own aesthetics,” explained Garcia.

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      “What I care about is that the students are working with the goal of improving the environment in mind, and doing so in a way that is unique to them,” he added.
      Garcia’s own work also features, in the form of a passive heating tent developed for the Atacama Desert in Chile where temperatures get very high during the day but drop dramatically at night.
      The tent uses a self-activating piston to expose a stick of soapstone, an efficient thermal accumulation material, to the sun to be heated during the day before being withdrawn into the tent at night where it gradually radiates heat to provide warmth.
      The exhibition runs until 20 NovemberSome projects produced by students on the course – which has an intake of between 20 and 25 each year – have worked so well that they have been left for use by the community.
      One such example is a project that used urine’s electrolyte properties to power a toilet light in rural Zanzibar, to enable women to feel safe using it at night.
      New Methods for Big Challenges: Architecture and Extreme Environments is being held in CAFx’s space at Halmtorvet 27 in Copenhagen’s Meatpacking District and runs until 20 November.
      Copenhagen Architecture Festival is running a series of events across Copenhagen and Aarhus, mainly between 6 and 16 October 2022. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.
      The photography is by Francesco Martello.

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      The Brooklyn Home Company designs Passivhaus in Brooklyn

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      American studio The Brooklyn Home Company has designed a Brooklyn townhouse using Passivhaus principles in New York’s Carroll Gardens neighbourhood.The Sackett Street townhouse comprises four storeys as well as a rooftop with views of the Manhattan skyline, along with a basement and a drive-in garage.

      The four-storey townhouse has views of the Manhattan skyline
      Stairs from an outside decking area lead to a back garden, and a private terrace is accessed from the main bedroom.
      Passivhaus is a recognised European energy standard for homes that require minimal energy to heat or cool and promote high indoor air quality.

      The Sackett Street townhouse’s back garden

      For the townhouse project, The Brooklyn Home Company used an energy recovery ventilation (ERV) filtration system.
      “The air quality brings health and cognitive benefits that the developer believes will become the new standard for home building in New York City,” co-founder of The Brooklyn Home Company William Caleo told Dezeen.
      “The homes also maintain humidity levels to prevent virus spread, which is common in both dry and cold weather. In short, our opinion is it’s the best way to build new homes,” he said.

      A living room leads to the back garden
      Adopting Passivhaus principles addresses two of society’s greatest threats, argued William Caleo.
      “As society grapples with not only the current public-health crisis but the reality of climate change, builders and home designers are using Passivhaus design as an alternative technique in the wake of Covid-19.”

      The house’s walls are painted in white Farrow and Ball paint
      William Caleo and his sister Lyndsay Caleo Karol worked closely with his sister’s husband, Fitzhugh Karol, the studio’s in-house artist, to design the interiors.
      Madera white oak hardwood floors and walls painted with white Farrow and Ball paint were chosen to create a “bright and airy” home.

      A hand-crafted bed by Fitzhugh Karol in the main bedroom
      Hand-crafted pieces of furniture designed by Fitzhugh Karol include the wooden four-poster bed in the main bedroom.

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      Other one-of-a-kind pieces include a bespoke dining table and a dresser, and the elegant twin beds in the children’s room were also made bespoke for the property.

      The twin beds in the children’s bedroom were made especially for the house
      The townhouse’s open-plan kitchen is a mixture of exposed beams and custom built-in wood, also designed by Fitzhugh Karol. A reclaimed ceiling by The Brooklyn Home Company hangs overhead.
      These rustic features are offset with sleek Pietra Cardosa countertops and a range cooker by La Cornue. Hardware fixtures by Waterworks and Restoration Hardware tie the space together.

      The property’s kitchen is a mix of rustic and polished features
      Selected artwork is also integral to the townhouse’s interior atmosphere. A notable piece is Tyler Hays of BDDW’s painting of a woman, made of puzzle pieces, which hangs in the dining room.
      Artistworks by Jen Wink Hays, Paule Morrot and Caleb Marcus Cain also decorate townhouse’s light and open rooms.

      Artist Tyler Hays’ puzzle painting adds depth to the dining room’s white walls
      The Brooklyn Home Company has recently launched 25 new homes also built according to Passivhaus principles across two Brooklyn developments in South Slope and Greenwood Heights.

      More Passivhaus projects outside of Europe include the upcoming 1075 Nelson Street skyscraper in Vancouver, designed by UK studio WKK Architects. When completed, it will be the world’s tallest Passivhaus building to date.
      Photography is by Matthew Williams and Travis Mark.

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      Formafantasma investigates impact of timber industry at Cambio exhibition

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      Formafantasma has curated a research-focused exhibition at the Serpentine Sackler Gallery in London, UK, which aims to unravel the global impact of the forestry industry. Entitled Cambio, the show sheds light on the legality and environmental impact of the extraction, production and distribution of wood to make products around the world. Ahead of the exhibition’s opening, […] More