How Is Amazon's Mass Timber Station Aiding Sustainability?

Amazon has unveiled a new mass timber delivery station in Elkhart, Indiana, that will function as a testing ground for its sustainability concepts.

The facility is set to become a live testing environment for over 40 distinct sustainability strategies, which could provide a blueprint for integrating sustainable practices into logistics and industrial buildings without disrupting core business operations.

Kara Hurst, Amazon’s Chief Sustainability Officer, says: “In climate action, we need to move fast. So, our teams got creative and asked: ‘What if we created a real-world testing ground for some of the best sustainability initiatives in one place?’ That's exactly what we did at DII5 our brand-new mass timber delivery station in Elkhart, Indiana.”

Mass timber and lowering embodied carbon

The DII5 facility, designed by ZGF Architects, was constructed primarily from mass timber.

According to Amazon, the building is "the first large-scale owner-occupied mass timber logistics facility in the United States".

The construction used Southern Yellow Pine cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels, glulam beams and wood fibre insulation.

The use of mass timber in construction can lower a building's embodied carbon compared to traditional materials like steel and concrete.

Beyond the structure, the site integrates permeable paving, "lower carbon concrete", high-efficiency outdoor lighting and a bio-retention pond for managing stormwater.

These features contribute to a holistic sustainability strategy addressing water management, energy use and material science.

The project demonstrates a large investment in exploring scalable green building solutions that align with Amazon's objective to achieve net-zero operations by 2040.

A testbed for sustainable innovation

The facility is designed to prove that sustainability can be integrated without compromising operational efficiency.

Amazon aims to use the findings from the test centre to scale sustainable projects.

Kara explains: “Buildings account for 40% of greenhouse gas emissions globally, and with that in mind, we designed DII5 to be a working laboratory with dozens of solutions – from the walls, water and lighting to the desks where our employees work. The data we are gathering will help us determine which technologies and initiatives can be scaled across our global operations.

Innovations at the DII5 facility include:

• Mass timber construction: DII5 utilised over half a million board feet of Southern Yellow Pine for its walls and other mass timber elements.
• Water re-circulation system: This approach captures rainwater for use in restrooms, reducing dependence on municipal water.
• EV investment: There are more than 170 electric vehicle charging stations and 125 EVs already delivering from the site.
• Natural lighting: The building’s clerestory windows line the delivery floor, bathing the interior in natural light.
• Air source heat pumps: These eliminate the need for gas utilities on-site.
• Biodiversity initiatives: The site includes over 90 plant species for pollinators and 2,900 newly planted tree saplings.
• Bio-based materials: Throughout the delivery station, there is everything from wood studs to wood fibre insulation and salvaged wood desks.

Scaling future and existing assets

Amazon will track a range of data points to assess the viability of these strategies for wider implementation.

"By testing several sustainability initiatives under one roof, we're accelerating our progress toward achieving scalability and standardisation of these initiatives across our building portfolio," says Daniel Mallory, VP of Global Realty at Amazon.

Daniel explains that the facility also serves as a "'test and learn' platform for Amazon and the broader industry to explore how buildings can become more adaptive, high-performing and resilient in a changing climate. The lessons we learn here will guide the future design, construction and operation of our spaces."

He says Amazon will track "multiple metrics, including total embodied carbon reduction compared to conventional construction, operational energy efficiency, water conservation performance, impacts of biodiversity and other metrics. We're also studying how the building performs in various weather conditions and monitoring construction and operational costs to assess the business case for scaling these approaches."

The insights gained from the Indiana warehouse are not just for future constructions.

The project is intended to generate a catalogue of proven retrofittable solutions for Amazon's existing portfolio of buildings, making the facility a strategic tool for decarbonising a vast real estate footprint.

"While we view DII5 as a strategic investment in designing and implementing sustainability strategies in our future building design, it will also give us an opportunity to test which of these initiatives can be scaled across our existing building portfolio," says Daniel.