4.1
Retail zoning and circulation planning
The way shops are zoned and the design of circulation within a shopping mall and shop spaces is critical to its success in
optimising its energy savings as well as achieving its ultimate green goal.
4.1.1 Zoning
Different programmes in a shopping mall require different opening and closing hours. For example, restaurants open
earlier than retail shops because people eat breakfast early in the morning; cinemas close later than restaurants and
shops because of late shows. Therefore, a good cinema circulation design has an exit that leads moviegoers directly out
of the mall so that operations in the mall and lighting and air-conditioning usage can be stopped at the time when shops
and the mall are supposed to be closed. This eliminates the necessity for the mall to maintain its electrical usage beyond
its closing time, thus reducing energy consumption. A similar approach can be adopted for restaurants, and in particular
Chinese restaurants where banquets might end very late at night.
This arrangement not only saves energy but also reduces costs for security, etc.
General zone:
Shops with normal
opening hours
Boutique and shops
Extra-hour zone:
Shops with long
opening hours
Ice rink
Food courts
Restaurants
Figure 63 Zoning of programmes with different opening and closing hours
4
Green design for shopping malls and shop spaces
4.1
Retail zoning and circulation planning
Hong Kong Green Building Council 99
