Oct 2007

A huge opportunity awaits builders who step into the gap in the market and provide answers and solutions to consumers who say they need expert advice. While builders assume the additional cost of building green is the biggest issue, a new survey shows consumers rank education and awareness as more important obstacles.

The market for green homes is expected to rise from $2 billion to $20 billion over the next five years states The Green Homeowner SmartMarket™ Report recently released from McGraw-Hill Construction.

The report also showed that 40% of homeowners who remodeled their homes sought green products, especially windows and heating and cooling systems. Notice these are also two components of the Energy Star total building envelope. The market will reward builders who can explain how to select energy efficient windows and recommend energy efficient HVAC systems. The National Fenestration Rating Council offers a useful primer on windows selection at www.efficientwindows.org.

The NAHB has coined the term “True Green Home” and defines it as homes that contain elements in 3 of 5 categories: Energy Efficiency, Indoor Air Quality, Water Efficiency, Resource Efficiency, and Site Management. All five of these areas are covered in the HERS curriculum or can be addressed through a consultation with rater.

Call Guaranteed Watt Saver to learn how to shorten your learning curve or borrow ours instantly. Be a rater or call a rater, but be able to answer consumers’ questions.

For more information, please contact GWS @ 1-888-488-0206 or visit our web site www.gwssi.com.

What is Carbon Neutral?

Wikipedia is an excellent starting place to learn the issues. To dig a little deeper, be sure to click on the highlighted footnotes at thebottom of thearticle to review the sources.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_neutral

The United States Green Building Council offers this explanation of what a carbon neutral product is:

Not to challenge the USGBC’s definition, but there are a few points to consider before accepting this statement. First it mentions the “entire life cycle of the product” should be accounted for when determining an appropriate off-set number. This brings into question how the product is used by the consumer and what its serviceable life is. Second, carbon sequestration projects are contentious debated both in theory and in accounting methods. There are numerous questions such as does it make ecological sense to plant a forest of something somewhere and expect it to survive for 100 years to compensate for a carbon emission released today? Is there adequate water? Does the region want or need a forest put upon them? The “scientific and accounting principles” referred to are both in flux and in debate.

Our society has been polarizing itself for decades and this results in people quickly taking one side or another side but not being able to defend their extreme positions. There is great value to staying in the middle of an issue and saying “I don’t know” or “I’m not sure.” Those are both accurate and truthful. When you are in the middle, you can engage in dialogue with both sides and have the freedom to evaluate a full range of information.

For more information, please contact GWS @ 1-888-488-0206 or visit our web site www.gwssi.com.

Kelly Parker, P.E.
President: GWS and RESNET

EEBA’s 25th Anniversary Excellence in Building

In case you missed the EEBA’s 25th Anniversary Excellence in Building in St. Paul, Minnesota this month, here’s a recap of the topics our industry is addressing:

“How Far Have We Come?:
by Oliver Drerup
Oliver gave a global view of the state of housing. He encouraged us to take a closer look at what we produce, how far we have come and what we have left to accomplish.

“The Next Generation House”
by Joseph Lstiburek, PhD
Joe explored the questions like what is it, what does it look like, why should we build it, how to make money building it and how to build millions of them.
“Green is Green: The Economics of Being Green” by Jeff Renaud, Director, GE Ecomagination. Jeff discussed relevant "green" trends GE sees for homebuilding in the near future.

“The Not so Big Life: Opportunities in a Changing Environment”
by Sarah Susanka, FAIA,
Sarah shared the message of her latest book, The Not So Big Life: Making Room for What Really Mattersand the opportunities that arise from this introspective shift in consumer thinking.

“LeanBuilding Blitz”
by Scott Sedan.
Scott shared a cost reduction process of lean manufacturing in the residential homebuilding industry. Scott shared the challenges at the forefront of the building industry’s quality revolution.

For more information, please contact GWS @ 1-888-488-0206 or visit our web site www.gwssi.com.

The Alliance to Save Energy's inaugural conference will serve as the premier gathering and showcase for the energy-efficiency industry. EE Global will attract industry professionals, academics and policy makers from around the world to promote the efficient use of energy through a curriculum aimed at sharing best practices and unifying the public and private sectors. Please visit www.eeglobalforum.com for more information.