Celebrating 25 years
The time seems to have gone so quickly but, amazingly, 2020 sees Green Building Store celebrate its 25th year of operation. Originally based in a shed on the side of Director Bill Butcher’s house with 2 staff (and a dog), the company now has 36 staff and a national reputation for low energy building products and expertise. The company has changed and evolved considerably over the last 25 years, illustrated by its switch to promoting the Passivhaus low energy standard in 2009.
Bill Butcher & Chris Herring - Green Building Store Directors
25 key milestones
1995 Environmental Construction Products (ECP) launched by three builders frustrated by the lack of availability of green building products. The Ecoplus range of high performance timber windows is launched and made in Huddersfield. Office set up in shed attached to Bill’s house. Staff: 2
1999 Company moves offices to Meltham centre. Staff: 7
2001 Trading name changed to Green Building Store launched as trading name of ECP, with launch of online shop selling natural paint and insulation. Slator-Butcher construction incorporated as Green Building Company. Staff: 16
2001 Green Building Company undertakes full-scale energy-efficient refurbishment of Bridge 5 Mill In Manchester, including training of 15 apprentices in the process.
2004 Launch of a range of products and services specifically for the public and commercial sectors, including water-saving products and commercial window ranges.
2005 Green Building Store’s Ecoplus System range becomes the first UK manufactured range of FSC® certified 100% windows and glazed doors.
2007 Green Building Store moves to its (current) Heath House Mill base. Staff: 24
2008 Green Building Store’s Ecoplus System window and door range receives a ‘Major Commendation Award’ in the BCE Environmental Leadership Awards
2009 Green Building Store launches range of Passivhaus products and services to help facilitate the uptake of Passivhaus design and construction in the UK.
Green Building Store receiving the Queens Award for Sustainable Development 2009
2009 Green Building Store wins Queen’s Award for Enterprise: Sustainable Development 2009, for its ‘pioneering approach to sustainability’.
2009 Bill Butcher contributes the ‘Passivhaus diaries’ blog for BUILDING magazine on the construction of the Denby Dale Passivhaus.
2010 The Denby Dale Passivhaus – the UK’s first Passivhaus built using cavity wall construction – is built by Green Building Store’s construction division and achieves Passivhaus certification. Green Building Store creates a 60-minute technical film on the building of the Denby Dale Passivhaus, with the support of Kirklees Council.
2010 Green Building Store Director Chris Herring helps found the Passivhaus Trust and is appointed Chair.
2012 Green Building Store won the Manufacturer of the Best Green Product category in the Yorkshire Post 2012 Environment Awards for its Ecoplus3 range of high performance timber windows & doors.
2012 Green Building Store develops its Warmer Homes resources to help householders undertake low energy retrofits , as part of the MASTT (Marsden & Slaithwaite Transition Towns) Warmer Homes project in partnership with Connect Housing, and were funded by DECC.
2013 Green Building Store commits to plant 1000 trees with Trees for Yorkshire over 4 years.
2014 Green Building Store achieves EnerPHit (Passivhaus retrofit) standard at the Cre8 Barn at Yorkshire Wildlife Trust’s Stirley Community Farm in Huddersfield. The project goes on to win ‘The Legacy Award – Sustainability’ at Constructing Excellence Yorkshire & Humber Awards 2014.
2015 Green Building Store commits to switch over to triple glazing for all its standard window specifications, so that triple glazing is sold as standard for its window and door ranges.
2015 Cre8 Barn wins ‘Retrofit Project’ category in UK Passivhaus Awards 2015.
2016 Golcar Passivhaus project certified and shortlisted for UK Passivhaus awards 2016
2016 Cumberworth radical retrofit project pioneers breathable internal wall insulation (IWI) solution in the UK.
2017 Lower Royd radical ‘whole house’ retrofit project wins the #RISE2017 Award for ‘Vision & Sustainability’.
2019 Green Building Store’s online store selling airtightness products, MVHR filters and insulation is re-launched. Staff: 36
2019 Green Building Store wins ‘Highly commended’ in BusinessGreen Leaders Awards Small Business category.
2019 Goldsmith Street project for Norwich City Council receives RIBA Stirling Prize for architecture. Green Building Store supplied and commissioned all the MVHR systems on the project.
