W&D Weekly - January 23, 2008 | Vol 3, Num 4
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DOE Updates Northeast Manufacturers on Plans for Energy Star Revisions
The Department of Energy is waiting to see what happens at the February International Code Council hearings before issuing its plans for revisions to Energy Star criteria for windows...
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Click here to download a PDF of DOE's 2nd official update on the Energy Star revision process. |
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DOE’s Richard Karney explained to NWDA members that in order to drive continued technological development, three sets of increasingly stringent criteria for Energy Star windows, going into effect in 2009, 2012 and 2015, will be issued. |
Overall, Karney suggested, the changes will include substantially lower U-values in the Northern zones and substantially lower solar heat gain coefficients in the Southern zones. Other possibilities include SHGC requirements in Northern climates that would encourage greater capture of winter solar gain. DOE is also considering expanding the use of alternative performance criteria, specifically SHGC/U-value trade-off options now only in place in the Southernmost climate zones.
Other changes still under consideration, Karney reported, include separate criteria for (opaque) entry doors, requirements for certified insulating glass units and inclusion of air leakage resistance minimums.
Emphasizing DOE’s goal to make Energy Star a driver of technology, Karney also said that current plans are to establish new criteria to go in effect in 2009, and more stringent criteria still in 2012 and 2015. Window and door manufacturers, he suggested, should be able to meet 2009 criteria using existing technology, but more advanced technologies, such as electrochromic glazing, might be needed to hit the 2015 numbers.
Right now, DOE plans to issue its revised Energy Star criteria for windows, doors and skylights by the first week of March, Karney concluded. A stakeholder meeting is scheduled for March 26 in Washington to allow feedback, with the final criteria expected to be determined in May. After the final numbers are determined, window and door manufacturers will be given at least nine months before the new Energy Star criteria take effect.
Also on the agenda at the NWDA meeting was Mike Fischer, code consultant for the Window & Door Manufacturers Association. Offering a broader overview of energy code changes, he suggested, “performance level wars” are likely to continue to ratchet up requirements. Pointing to LEED and a number of state initiatives, he said that private, state and federal programs will continue to emerge that seek to differentiate “efficient buildings” from “code compliant” ones. As is happening with Energy Star, the bar is being raised and code officials are responding by saying, “Why not change code?”
Nils Petermann of the Efficient Windows Collaborative was also on the agenda, focusing on how manufacturers might be able to capitalize on utility incentive programs using new technology. He pointed to a number of utilities, particularly in the Northwest, where homeowners can get rebates when buying upgraded replacement windows, but noted there might even be more opportunities in low-E storm windows, which can be very cost effective upgrades.
Petermann suggested there is some hesitance among utilities to offer rebates for windows, because they are costly compared to other energy upgrades and there is fear of “free ridership”—customers getting the rebates who would have bought the products anyway. Looking beyond energy performance to the whole issue of green was Cheryl Baldwin of Green Seal Inc., which does third party certification of green products. Demand for green is growing, Baldwin noted, and beyond that, we’re seeing an economic shift. “Companies that address environmental and climate change concerns are now seen among the best investments out there.”
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Marketers should take a holistic approach, encompassing both the product and company, in selling green, suggested Green Seal’s Cheryl Baldwin. |
Among her general advice for NWDA members interested in selling green is to take “a more holistic approach that includes both the product and the company.” She also urged manufacturers not to “greenwash” noting that it will not only hurt the company, but can give a whole industry a black eye. Information provided in marketing should be appropriate for the product, accurate, verifiable and informative to the consumer. As an example, she noted, if you say something is “recyclable,” you need to explain how so. Third party programs, she noted, play an important role not only increasing the credibility of a specific green product claim, but demonstrating a company’s overall commitment.
The panel of speakers helped NWDA attract increased attendance at the winter meeting, noted Bill Donnelly of Silver Line Windows, current NWDA president. Noting that the association also enjoyed a growth year in membership, he suggested that “perhaps it’s a good sign” for the window business.
NWDA’s next meeting is scheduled for July 14-15 at the Crystal Springs Resort in Hamburg, N.J. More information is available at nwda.net.
Solar Innovations Invests in New Facility
Solar Innovations broke ground in January on a $9.7-million manufacturing plant in Pine Grove, Penn. It expects to expand its 91-person workforce by another 48 positions...
Solar Innovations broke ground in January on a $9.7-million manufacturing plant in Pine Grove, Penn. The producer of sloped overhead glazing products, skylights, folding glass doors, curtain wall, conservatories and a host of other related products expects to expand its 91-person workforce by another 48 positions. Groundbreaking ceremonies for Solar Innovations’ new plant.
The company plans to relocate its entire operation from Myerstown, Penn., to the Pine Grove site less than 20 miles away. The move will virtually double available production space to accommodate future business growth, according to company officials. All existing employees of Solar Innovations will continue at the new location. Solar Innovations Inc. was established in 1998 and has since grown to offer its comprehensive lines of solar structures, operable and retractable panels, doors and windows nationally and internationally.
MI to Handle CertainTeed Window Brand in East
MI Windows & Doors will become the licensor of CertainTeed brand windows and patio doors in the Eastern half of the U.S....
MI Windows & Doors Inc. has entered into a 10-year agreement with CertainTeed Corp. to become the licensor of CertainTeed brand windows and patio doors in Eastern half of the United States. That agreement comes in tandem with MI’s purchase of certain assets from Ply Gem Industries, which acquired CertainTeed’s vinyl window and door business in September 2007.
Ply Gem continues to be the licensor for CertainTeed brand window products in the Western U.S. and Western Canada.
In 2006, Gratz, Pa.-based MI acquired CertainTeed’s window manufacturing plant in Indiana. With that purchase, it became a licensed CertainTeed fabricator for much of the Midwest. MI’s latest purchase involves assets used to produce and market vinyl extrusions sold to all licensed fabricators in the Eastern regions of North America.
MI will now supply CertainTeed products in its existing territories and those areas previously served by Viwinco Inc. That company recently launched its own line of vinyl window and door product. MI will continue to license the CertainTeed brand for windows and patio doors to independent fabricators in Iowa, Texas, Connecticut and Maryland. In addition, MI has been granted responsibility for marketing, engineering/technical services, and new product development associated with CertainTeed window and door growth in the Eastern regions. In addition, MI has been granted responsibility for marketing, engineering/technical services, and new product development associated with CertainTeed window and door growth in the Eastern regions.
“We are excited about the opportunities this will create for our customers, team members, and supply partners,” says Matt DeSoto, president of MI’s Eastern division. “The potential for our Eastern team to increase market share with the trusted and well respected CertainTeed brand name is limitless.”
As part of the agreement, MI, along with the other CertainTeed brand window fabricators in the East, will still benefit from customer-focused incentives that increase the value of the brand, including CertainTeed’s builder and remodeler rebate and rewards programs, officials note.
Private Buyer to Purchase Ram Industries
Ram Industries, a custom window manufacturer and distributor, has agreed to be purchased by a private investor...
Ram Industries Inc., a Houston-based custom window manufacturer and distributor, has agreed to be purchased by a private investor for an undisclosed sum. The identity of the buyer was not released.
The company retained an advisory firm, GW Equity, in late 2006 to help it identify a potential buyer.
“With more than 20 successful years in the custom window industry, Ram Industries is well-poised for expansion,” says Tim Cook, GW Equity’s lead dealmaker for the transaction. “After marketing our client to a variety of prospective buyers, we identified a strategic buyer who was eager to build on Ram’s successes and grow the company.”
Ram Industries manufactures and distributes aluminum and vinyl windows and doors to custom homebuilders. The company provides custom sizes, designs and window combinations to numerous clients across Texas. Ram’s niche is supplying upscale custom home builders with aluminum frame windows.
- Remodeling Activity Projected to Remain Sluggish
from Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies - NAHB Applauds Fed Rate Cuts; Calls On Congress To Do Its Part
from National Association of Home Builders - America's Most Lucrative Neighborhoods
from Forbes.com
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Remodeling Activity Projected to Remain Sluggish
from Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies
Tighter credit standards and falling consumer confidence are expected to depress remodeling spending through 2008 according to Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies. The Leading Indicator for Remodeling Activity (LIRA) reports that homeowner spending for home improvement activity will continue to decline, falling by an annual rate of 2.6% through the third quarter of 2008... read more
NAHB Applauds Fed Rate Cuts; Calls On Congress To
Do Its Part
from National Association of Home Builders
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) today applauded the Federal Reserve Board’s aggressive action to cut interest rates by 75 basis points to help jump-start the economy... read more
America's Most Lucrative Neighborhoods
from Forbes.com
Twenty years ago, few house-hunters were interested in Charlestown, Mass. In this small, dense neighborhood, just across the river from Boston, commercial fishing piers and industrial development fell in the shadow of Interstate 93. Property values were appropriately low. But the Big Dig, a project that rerouted part of Interstate 93 under the heart of Boston and officially completed late last month, changed that by opening the Charlestown waterfront to luxury real estate development. With the area's highways underground, the waterfront became attractive to buyers seeking views of the city... read more