In February, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)
held their annual International Builders Show at the Orange County
Convention Center for the fourth year in a row. This year 92,000 builders,
construction professionals and buyers attended, and the high-performance
homes stole the show again. Some of these homes, with their energy-saving
construction and features, were designed and evaluated with the help
of many Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC) faculty. As part of FSEC’s
Building America Industrialized Housing
Partnership (BAIHP),
researchers provided in-depth technical assistance to the
builders of these highly visible homes to assure significant levels
of energy efficiency. FSEC researchers also attended the show in Orlando
to provide live technical help at the U.S. Department of Energy’s
(DOE) “Ask the Experts” booth and educate visitors about
the technologies being supported by energy efficiency and solar energy
research.
“One of the great things about being part of the show is meeting
the variety of people who are interested in high performance
and energy-efficient construction, as well as providing answers
to their challenging questions,” said Stephanie Thomas-Rees,
a research architect in FSEC’s Buildings Research Division who
was stationed at the DOE booth.
In addition to Thomas-Rees, FSEC employees David Hoak, Danny Parker,
John Sherwin, Camilo Gil, David Beal, David Chasar, Bob Abernethy,
Janet McIlvaine and Subrato Chandra had a chance to provide expertise
at the booth during the four-day show. While at the booth, Chandra,
BAIHP project director, had the opportunity to brief DOE Secretary
Samuel W. Bodman and Assistant Secretary Andrew Karsner on the Building
America program.
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Guests at the International Builders
Show toured the Bimini II “Green” home. Manufactured
by Palm Harbor Homes and tested for energy efficiency
by FSEC, the home scored a 57 on the new EnergySmart
Home scale (E-Scale). (Photo: Subrato Chandra) |
This year, two homes built by Palm Harbor Homes with help from FSEC
were on display at the show: the Bimini II “Green” home
and the Glen Cairn “Comfortably Affordable” home. As part
of the BAIHP project, personnel from FSEC and Calcs-Plus,
a BAIHP subcontractor, worked with Palm Harbor Homes by conducting
blower door testing for leakage, performing factory and site
inspections, attending design review meetings and making recommendations
to assure energy efficiency and sustainable design. Both
homes were outfitted with low-E, double glazed vinyl windows, spray
foam insulation, high-efficiency heat pumps, Energy Star® appliances,
and a number of other features to promote energy efficiency and indoor
air quality. The Bimini
model also featured a solar water heater donated by the SunBuilt
program.
For the first time in the history of the Builders' Show, one of the
four days was designated “Green Day” to celebrate the
green sector of the building industry. In conjunction with
this all-day green celebration, DOE announced its Builders
Challenge, which called on the U.S. homebuilding industry
to build at least 220,000 high-performance, energy-efficient
homes by 2012. The scale
on which DOE ranks all homes participating in the Builders
Challenge is the EnergySmart Home scale, or E-scale, where
home ratings are based on their overall energy performance.
A typical new home today might score 100 on this scale, while zero-energy
homes score a zero because they produce as much energy as they consume.
For a home to qualify for the Builders Challenge, it must
score 70 or lower. This score would essentially translate to a 30
percent more energy-efficient home than the average new home built
to current international energy efficiency codes. Almost half of the
38 builders that signed up for the Challenge on February 14 are working
with FSEC’s
BAIHP team.
“There was an increased interest at the DOE booth this year,” said
Janet McIlvaine, an FSEC buildings research analyst. “I think
the announcement of the Builders Challenge sparked a lot of interest
in green building and energy efficiency at this year’s show.”
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DOE Secretary Samuel W. Bodman places
the very first E-Scale, with the Bimini home qualifying
score of 57, inside the model home. Assistant Secretary
Andrew Karsner and Philip Fairey, FSEC Deputy Director,
look on.
(Photo: Courtesy of the U.S. Department of Energy) |
The first E-scale label was placed in the Bimini model home, boasting
its Builders Challenge qualifying score of 57, by DOE Secretary
Bodman with the help of Assistant Secretary Karsner and Philip
Fairey, FSEC Deputy Director. FSEC also created several “green
tags” that
were placed in the home which highlighted specific green
products showcased inside the home. The FSEC team produced
the E-scale labels and informational brochures highlighting energy-efficient
and sustainable energy strategies used in the construction of the
home, as well as the Florida Green Building Coalition certifications
for both the Bimini and Glen Cairn models. FSEC personnel leading
this effort were Stephanie Thomas-Rees, David Hoak, Sherri Shields
and Anne Marie Anderson. Dennis Stroer of Calcs-Plus, and a member
of the BAIHP team, conducted the testing and energy rating support
for both of the Palm Harbor homes.
“There was a huge amount of involvement from FSEC, our partners
and subcontractors that led toward the success of these show homes,” said
Thomas-Rees. “This year we [FSEC] probably had the heaviest
employee participation in the show ever.”
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Subrato Chandra, Building America Industrialized Housing Partnership project director, had the opportunity to brief DOE Secretary Bodman about the Building America program at the International Builders' Show.
(Photo: Courtesy of the U.S. Department of Energy) |
FSEC employees were involved in a number of activities surrounding
high-profile, site-built show homes as well. Carlos Colon,
senior buildings research engineer, led the energy testing
and rating for the New American Home 2008 in Lake Nona, while
Thomas-Rees led the green certifications. David Hoak, a buildings
researcher, provided photo documentation of construction,
inspections, and testing support for the home. The New American
Home is an annual building program that demonstrates use
of innovative building materials, cutting-edge design, and
the latest construction techniques, providing production
homebuilders with an example for producing more energy-efficient,
durable homes without sacrificing style. Eric Martin and John Sherwin,
both senior buildings research engineers, worked with Calcs-Plus personnel
to provide technical expertise and green certifications for the 2008
Orlando Vision House. The Green Builder Vision House Series
is a group of demonstration projects around the country that showcase
design in accordance with the NAHB’s
Model Green Building Guidelines, which address lot preparation
and design, resource efficiency, energy efficiency, water
efficiency and conservation, occupancy comfort and indoor
environmental quality, and operation, maintenance, education
and global impact. This year, the 2008 Orlando Vision House
was certified green according to a statewide green building program
operated by the Florida Green Building Coalition.
“So much interest in energy efficient building was generated
at this year’s show,” said Thomas-Rees. “I’m
confident that green building will continue to become a more common
practice in the upcoming years.”
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