ToolBase Services is the housing industry's resource for technical information on building products, materials, new technologies, business management, and housing systems. The NAHB Research Center provides the services, with funding from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) through The Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing (PATH) program, and other industry sponsors.

ToolBase Resources

ToolBase Resources combines product descriptions, design & construction guides, best practices, performance reports, case studies, and other resources in way that builders and remodelers will find useful.

The Technology Inventory

Because of the huge number of housing technologies and the diversity of builders, even the best technologies do not always make a big splash when they enter the market. PATH (The Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing) created the Technology Inventory to accelerate the awareness and acceptance process.

PATH's Technology Inventory lists over 170 new technologies that demonstrate great potential for improving housing performance, but that have not been widely used or accepted. It provides builders a reliable source of information on new products or processes. It lists details on each technology and contact information for the manufacturers. PATH also uses this list to pick technologies for use in Field Evaluations.

Field Evaluations

PATH promotes the general use of new housing technologies through evaluation projects and demonstration programs with builders remodelers and manufacturers across the country.

Field Evaluations are used to introduce PATH technologies into the home building industry. The NAHB Research Center and Steve Winter Design work with builders and remodelers to incorporate technologies in their designs for monitoring and evaluation of cost and performance. Data gathered in the field fills in the information voids on technologies, and provides valuable feedback to product manufacturers and homebuilders.

Tech Sets

PATH Tech Sets are a resource to help you implement innovations in manageable, systems-based packages. Developed by the NAHB Research Center through PATH and released quarterly, these Tech Sets take the guesswork out of choosing cost-effective technologies. They show you how the recommended technologies can be used together to receive benefits that are greater than the sum of the parts: the key to a systems based approach.

Newsletters

ToolBase provides two useful sources of topical stories.

ToolBase News is a bi-monthly technical newsletter that covers the latest research, trends, and other industry happenings. The newsletter provides practical information that building professionals can use immediately in their businesses. It is available free through local and state home builder associations.

ToolBase/PATH E-News, a bi-weekly electronic newsletter, provides a news link between research centers, laboratories, universities, manufacturers, and builders to keep you updated on the latest trends, technologies, and issues in the construction industry, particularly those dealing with information technology.