The new Somerfield styleStore design encompasses a number ofdisciplines: Retail Planning refers to theprovision of detailed 2D working drawingsfor store contractors; Space Planning refersto the analytical and statistical task ofmacro space allocation of categoryfootages within a supermarket and ConceptDevelopment is concerned with the overalllook of the completed stores. David Readeis one of four Concept DevelopmentManagers at Somerfield reporting to theConcept Development Controller. Davidand his colleagues ensure the successfuldesign and implementation of the ‘concept’store programme across the country. Davidexplains, "We design the model storelayouts and determine the best use of storespace, deciding the amount of chill spaceand the amount of ambient space, thespace layout and the wall, ceiling and floortreatments and signage in line with thenew Somerfield style." David adds, "Thiswas a new thrust in our business. A decisionhad been made to invest in the Somerfieldand Kwik Save brands. We needed to investin new equipment such as lighting, chillcabinets, freezers and shelving anyway, sowe decided at the same time to invest inthe whole store appearance. We developeda new fascia brand, a new logo and newcolour schemes. With Revit, we definedthem, prototyped them and put them intothe stores, right, first time."

� Success Story � Somerfield plc � � �

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Somerfield plc select Autodesk® Revit® for new generation stores

Fast, capable and affordableDeveloping the stores in this way was criticalto the business. The team had to eliminateall risk of delay and changes that could putpressure on store reopening and hencestore revenue. They needed to see whatthe stores would look like, in advance of theredevelopment work. David usedAutoCAD® to produce a number of modelsto illustrate the potential of 3D. However,not all CAD packages are intuitive to use in3D and it was clear that it would be difficultto represent some of the complicatedpieces of equipment. David notes, "I wasaware of some of the solutions that wereavailable, but had not heard of Revit. I hadconsidered AutoCAD and 3ds max™ butthat choice would have meant moreexpenditure and more training. What reallybrought Revit into the equation was a callfrom Autodesk just at the right time, whenthe team was stretched and under pressure.We were just considering what we coulduse for the job and the phone rang!" Thecall was closely followed by a demonstration.David comments, "Revit looked very good. Icould see that it was fast, capable andaffordable. It was easy to demonstrate andlooked as though it would save us time. Iwent along to an exhibition in London andmet other Revit users. There were manydifferent organisations using it in differentways. Did I have any caveats? No, none thatI can remember."

"Revit has enabled us to domore work in less time."

"Revit is such an intuitivepackage that you can just getin and use it."

"We were able to show exactlywhat we wanted: walltreatments, text and graphics,exact wall colours,everything."

David Reade, ConceptDevelopment Manager

"It is easy to pick up; sensiblein the way it works."

John Potter, ConceptDevelopment Manager

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Somerfield plc choose Autodesk® Revit® to help thedevelopment of their new storesDouble digit growth for ‘concept’ storesWhen JH Mills opened his first grocery store in Bristol in 1875, did he know that hehad sown a seed that was to grow into Somerfield plc, one of the biggest names inUK retailing? For the company now has over 1,300 Somerfield and Kwik Save storesand records over 12 million customer visits every week. It is one of the biggestemployers in retailing with 56,000 staff. Somerfield stocks over 6,000 own labelproducts and has a commitment to regional sourcing with over 1,000 local lines inlocal stores. It carries more than 65 different fresh organic lines, over 300 otherorganic products and has removed all genetically modified ingredients from its ownlabel foods. According to consumer purchase information supplied by AC NielsenHomescanTM, the global market research company, in the 52 weeks to December 1st2001, Somerfield and Kwik Save had a 6.8% share of the total grocery market. Twoyears ago, the company launched a major refurbishment programme. Intended as ablueprint for the future shape of the business, the ‘concept’ store programmeintroduced a new, modernised and clearly recognisable signature image for many ofthe company’s premises. Somerfield re-engineered its product ranges andpromotions, and invested heavily to provide an attractive and trusted shoppingenvironment for its customers, using Autodesk Revit to help with the task. Theapproach clearly worked; on a like-for-like basis, double digit sales growth has beenachieved at refitted Somerfield stores.

Vastly better visualisationsAt a second demonstration, Revit wasshown to be capable of everything that NeilFoord, the Concept DevelopmentController, required. Revit was installed in2001 and David Reade records how easy itwas to use. He says, "We knew we couldrecreate the stores themselves very quicklyand easily. We just imported the 2D floorplans from AutoCAD and snapped more orless automatically round the walls wewanted. We then worked totally in Revit. Itwas as simple as that. Then we populatedthe model with the equipment we plannedto use. Rather than use the equipmentmanufacturer’s own CAD models, we decidedto draw every piece of the equipment aspart of the training. That meant we hadeverything in place and could quicklypopulate any store we worked on. Revitproduced vastly better visualisations thanwe were getting previously." In terms oftraining, David adds, "For us, two days wassufficient because we were already familiarwith CAD software."

Just like shelling peasRevit was used initially on the refit of theShoreham store in Sussex. As a control,before work at the site began, thedelicatessen counter was modelled in Revit,as were the surrounding areas, completewith finishes and colours. Anything thatwas to go into the store was included. Theresulting visualisations were shown to thedirectors and any outstanding issuesresolved. The rendered model was in factvery close in appearance to the finishedstore. However, the main test came withthe development of the Winchester store.This 9,000 ft2 unit had every element of‘concept’ store thinking and every piece of‘concept’ store equipment in it. If Revit wasgoing to be stretched, it would be stretchedon this project. A large number ofelevations were produced and a range ofviews and walk-throughs were generated.David Reade says, "The Shoreham store waswhere we put our training to the test, butWinchester is where we really went totown. We generated a lot of output thatwas well received and well used. We havecompared the Revit visualisations withphotographs of the completed Beers Winesand Spirits area. They too, are remarkablyclose to each other. Of course, we did notmodel the actual merchandise, but that isthe only discernable difference." Revit wasthen used on the refurbishment of sixLondon stores, all different and all existingKwik Save stores that were to be convertedto Somerfield stores. Problem bulkheads,beams and difficult sales floor areas wereidentified during a series of site visits.

Using Revit, the implementation teamswere then provided with detailed elevations.David notes, "We were able to show the siteteam every wall and all the equipment. Wewere able to show exactly what we wanted:wall treatments, text and graphics, exactwall colours, everything. That level ofinformation was very well received. Therewere over 100 stores to be refurbished, so itbecame just like shelling peas."

Communicating concepts and detailDavid Reade finds that Revit has enabledfast decision-making. He continues, "I mayhave the site foreman at the end of thephone asking for urgent resolution of aproblem. It could be something that hadnot been considered, a column or abulkhead that looked straightforward onthe 2D site plan, for example. You can gointo Revit, sort the problem and send a newvisualisation in Adobe® pdf format bye-mail, immediately. It saves so much panicand heartache." David’s colleagues have aview, too. John Potter, also a ConceptDevelopment Manager, does not use Revitevery day, but "… I can still use it effectively.It is easy to pick up; sensible in the way itworks." Barry Towsdale, EnvironmentExecutive, acknowledges the value of Revitin communicating concepts and detail.David says, "Barry defines the externaltreatment, we interpret his recommendationsin Revit, then get Barry’s approval."

More for lessSumming up, David notes, "Revit hasenabled us to do more work in less time.The cost was a drop in the ocean for what ithas given us. It has turned out to be moneywell spent." He adds, "There is a furthercost benefit, too. Since contractors usuallywork on a fixed price basis, they bear thecost of their errors. In the same way, webear the cost of ours, so it is imperative thatwe do not make any mistakes." As for thefuture, David says, "We have shown that byworking in 3D from the start we can get theelevations and views very quickly and at

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Images courtesy of Somerfield plc

reduced cost. Ultimately we will have anintranet for project team access andextranet for contractor access." Whenasked how the team would have managedwithout Revit, David commented, "Wewould have had to use AutoCAD. It wouldhave taken us a lot longer and it wouldhave been much slower. We may have gotthe same result in the end, but the turn-round on these stores is so fast, just 18weeks from start to finish, from concept tofirst shopper. What happens if we’re a daylate? We can’t be." Finally, David has someadvice for those looking to move to 3D. Hesays, "Make sure that the solutions you areevaluating do the things you want, in theway that you want. Then try for yourself.And don’t hesitate over implementation.Revit is such an intuitive package that youcan just get in and use it. It’s asstraightforward as that."

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