Decarbonization and sustainability have been emphasized at dm for many years. The complete disconnection of dm's operations in all dm countries from fossil fuels is to be realized by the end of the 2029/30 business year, namely by September 30, 2030. From June 2023 to April 2024, dm in Slovakia disconnected a total of 17 old branches from fossil fuels and plans to continue disconnecting. These branches were rebuilt in such a way that they use electricity instead of natural gas for heating the commercial and ancillary premises.
"Reducing dm drogerie markt's connection to fossil fuels is an important step in solving climate change, since fossil fuels are one of the main sources of warming. This new type of investment means for us at dm, as well as for our customers, in many ways greater independence, greater sustainability, a healthier environment and also high quality cosmetics and food thanks to the optimal temperature and humidity in the facilities," said Juraj Charvát, procurator of dm drug store mart.
Dm currently has 159 branches in Slovakia, of which 64 currently use only electricity for heating. For this purpose, it uses a VRV system, namely a heat pump with continuous heating Daikin VRV IV+. In the next business year, dm plans to disconnect another 20 branches. The whole process is difficult from the point of view of communication with landlords, and especially in the case of older objects, the process is complicated by insufficient technical documentation.
In the current business year, dm put into operation a new warehouse in the Prologis logistics center in Senec with an area of 30,000 m2, which also includes administrative inserts with a total area of 4,300 m2. The warehouse area uses Rooftops from the Lennox company for heating and cooling, supplemented by Daikin split units. It also heats the areas intended for the administration and management of the warehouse with purely electric energy, which is also used for the preparation of hot water.
All products are stored here year-round in optimal conditions until they reach the store shelves. An interesting thing was the installation of 12 pieces of key cooling technology on the roof of the logistics center by helicopter.