L. Collins
Smakkfitness,
United States
Keywords: green future, eco friendly, sustainability, energy harvesting
Summary:
Smakkfitness provides a comfortable and effective workout space along with equipment and products, that also strive to be self- sustaining. We have developed an environment wherein we can reduce our total carbon emissions by 60% while still maintaining a first-rate, state-of-the-art gym facility that provides our members with a great workout experience. Smakkfitness takes a comprehensive approach to creating an environmentally friendly fitness club by evaluating all aspects of how our business operates, how our facilities use energy, and how we can influence our members to engage in eco-friendly practices in their daily lives. Smakkfitness is located in LEED certified or Built Green Commercial buildings. These buildings are designed and built to lower their impact on the environment by using locally grown and sustainable building materials and drastically lowering water and electricity needs by using energy efficient lighting and appliances and through well insulated building envelopes. While the number of these type of buildings are ever increasing, they are still limited, however we can still apply Built Green principles to any tenant improvements such as cork and recycled rubber flooring for yoga, cardio and weight rooms, zero VOC paints, and ENERGY STAR lights and appliances. Secondly, we are using alternative clean energy methods for meeting our electricity needs. Our cardio fitness equipment is designed so that we can capture electricity from the equipment and use it for our electricity needs. We are also utilizing solar power from two PV solar panels. Finally, we have elected to buy any additional electricity that we need from the power company from renewable energy sources such as solar and wind. We also encourage our members to engage in environmentally friendly practices around the club and in their daily lives. Members are encouraged to turn off lights, TV’s, and cardio equipment when not in use, and we are currently working on ways to provide incentives to our members for finding alternative ways of getting to the gym such as walking or riding their bikes. Some of the ways we achieve our goal of sustainability and reduced emissions: Energy-producing cardio equipment (ellipticals and stationary bikes) Treadmills that use 30% less electricity than regular models Purchase of slightly used equipment Tablets for Personal Use vs higher consuming TVs Member-controlled lights, televisions, and fans that are turned on only when needed No bottled water sales; encourage use of refillable steel water bottles, which we do sell Use all natural, non-VOC cleaning supplies and hand soap Paper products (toilet tissue, paper towels, etc.) are all recycled paper Eco-friendly building construction materials, including recycled rubber and Marmoleum flooring Solar panels installed on the building exterior Energy efficient ceiling fans Compact fluorescent and LED lighting