Welcome to the ToolBase/PATH E-News. You can access prior issues or subscribe to this electronic news service on the ToolBase Services website - http://www.toolbase.org - by clicking the "Newsletters" link at the top of the page.
We want to hear about your housing-related news for future issues - email information to the E-News Editor. (The NAHB Research Center's ToolBase editorial staff reserves the right to refuse or condense any news submission.) Enjoy this issue of ToolBase/PATH E-News.
In This Issue:
RESULTS OF INNOVATION IN RESIDENTIAL BUILDING PROJECT RELEASED:
According to a recent release (11/09/06), research conducted by the Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing (PATH) and McGraw-Hill Construction found that additional market research can better equip stakeholders to meet the challenges to adoption of technology in housing. The report, “Residential Market Research for Innovation,” found that market research in five critical areas—value and valuation of housing technology and innovation, performance measures, role and interests of other players and intermediaries, information and knowledge transfer, and market data collection methods—would greatly facilitate the adoption of housing technology and innovation. To learn more, read the release or download a copy of the report.
NANOTECHNOLOGY HOLDS GREAT POTENTIAL, SOME RISKS IN ARCHITECTURAL APPLICATIONS:
According to a recent article in Nanowerk Spotlight (George Elvin, 11/09/06), the construction industry is ripe for innovations offered by nanotechnology and nanomaterials. Some innovations incorporate nanotechnology are already on the market, such as self-cleaning windows, flexible solar panels, and wi-fi blocking paint, and others including self-healing concrete, materials to block ultraviolet and infrared radiation, smog-eating coatings, and light-emitting walls and ceilings are in development. There are also nanotech-enabled sensors that can monitor temperature, humidity, and airborne toxins and will soon be able to monitor vibration, decay, and other performance concerns in building components and appliances. Nanotechnology can also make products more environmentally benign, such as in coatings that release non-volatile compounds like hydrogen as they cure or reduce mold and mildew. However, the article notes that designers, builders, and homeowners should be aware of potential risks from nanotechnology, such as inhalation or absorption of nanoparticles. To learn more, read the article.
SOCIAL IMPROVEMENT MEETS SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE:
According to a recent article in the New York Times (Robert Sharoff, 11/05/06), two projects currently under development in Chicago symbolize the city’s commitment to housing the homeless and indigent and to sustainable design. The buildings include a new 96-unit project and a new home for the city’s largest and oldest homeless shelter. Both meet the United States Green Building Council’s LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification standards. The first project features an elaborate network of wind turbines and solar panels on a rounded roof that together will generate about 15 percent of the building’s power requirements. It also has the city’s first “greywater system,” which captures and recycles runoff from sinks and showers. The other project will include a 16,000-square-foot green roof, solar panels, and energy-efficient heating and cooling systems. To learn more, read the article.
MANUFACTURED HOMES COMPETE WITH TRADITIONAL HOUSES:
Recent articles in the Knoxville News-Sentinel (Michael Silence, 10/10/06) and in the Orlando Sentinel (Jerry W. Jackson, 11/06/06) report on the increasing popularity of manufactured homes, which can reduce labor costs for builders and result in lower prices for buyers. According to the Knoxville News-Sentinel, home builder Clayton Homes is taking advantage of recent advances that allow manufactured homes to have many of the same amenities as site-built homes, including porches, cedar siding, large bathrooms, and walk-in closets. According to the company’s founder, the new homes are attracting traditional financing for the first time, and have allowed the builder to move into higher-end neighborhoods. According to the Orlando Sentinel article, modular structures have been gaining ground nationwide in recent years—the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) estimates that about 44,000 modular homes were constructed in 2005, about 26 percent more than a decade earlier. According to Don Carlson, editor and publisher of Automated Builder, acceptance of modular building should increase as generational attitudes change. To learn more, read the Knoxville News-Sentinel and the Orlando Sentinel articles.
MODULAR MANUFACTURERS GET LEAN WITH PATH:
According to a recent release (11/08/06), the Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing (PATH) has entered a cooperative agreement with the Manufactured Housing Research Alliance (MHRA) to help understand the role of lean manufacturing methods in improving home building practices. Lean manufacturing, which was first adopted by the automotive industry, helps identify and eliminate waste on site. According to the release, MHRA is creating a Center for Lean Home Building that will apply the system into all aspects of the home building process. This project, which will be completed in mid-2007, will advance the goals outlined in PATH’s manufactured housing roadmap, “Technology Roadmapping for Manufactured Housing.” To learn more, read the release.
TOUGHER NAILS AND TOUGHER DUCT TAPE—2006’s TOP INNOVATIONS:
Popular Science’s recent profile of the Top 100 Innovations of 2006 (Nov. 2006) includes several new home technologies, including a nail that can help homes better withstand hurricanes and earthquakes. The HurriQuake nail’s bottom section is circled with angled barbs that resist pulling out in wind gusts of up to 170 mph, and the ring shank stops halfway up to leave the middle of the nail, which endures the most stress during an earthquake, at its maximum thickness and strength. The top of the nail is a spiral shank with blade-like facets that keep planks from wobbling, and its head is 25 percent larger in order to resist counter sinking and pulling through. Other home tech advances include a new hammer specially designed to break things rather than drive nails, a circuit breaker for plumbing systems, an improved water barrier that uses a series of dimples and channels to let moisture dry or drain out, a stronger duct tape and an easily-installed home windmill system. To find out more about these technologies, visit the Popular Science website.
WHO GETS TO SAY WHAT GREEN BUILDING REALLY MEANS?:
According to a recent article in Builder Magazine (Ted Cushman, 10/01/06), although green building is clearly an idea with practical merit, "green" is also the hot new marketing fad, which has resulted in plenty of green claims based on sketchy rationales. According to Environmental Building News editor Alex Wilson, his organization, which produces the GreenSpec Directory of green building products, rejects most of the products that are pitched to them because they do not meet the publication’s criteria. Wilson adds that products are just part of green building's big picture, and that energy efficiency, location, land-use strategies, building size, and indoor environmental quality are far more important. Green building rating systems, such as Energy Star, NAHB’s Green Building Guidelines, and the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Homes (LEED-H) can help take some of the work out of looking for green products and building methods. To learn more, read the article.