Under a short, rigid time frame and tons of pressure, the builders who construct The New American Home® each year face unique obstacles. The National Association of Home Builders’ National Council of the Housing Industry requires TNAH’s builders to build to extremely high performance requirements, which adds its own set of challenges. The NCHI’s commitment to quality clearly communicates that energy and performance features are as important in a home as the architectural styling and aesthetics.
The glitz of Las Vegas made its way into the city’s convention center this past January, when the International Builders’ Show (IBS) attracted 104,698 attendees. A buzz of energy surged through the 800,000 square feet of exhibit space, as the 1,600 total exhibitors proudly touted the features of new gizmos and gadgets. Frequently the words “The New American Home” were heard in the buzz, compelling attendees to wait in the constant line for a bus that would take them to tour the IBS showcase home.
The New American Home® (TNAH®) 2004 sits on the banks of man-made Sahara Lake, about six miles west of downtown Las Vegas. As they do each year, Builder Magazine led tours through the home. But this year, the tours had a new focus: new technologies, energy performance, and quality features. Though this home isn’t the first TNAH® to be extremely energy efficient, it’s relatively new to hear so much about its performance.
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Insulated Concrete Forms were used for the exterior walls in TNAH® 2004. |
In the first year that high performance features were required in TNAH®, the media turned a blind eye to these extra measures. Instead, they focused solely on the architectural design, products, and materials. Now the home’s energy efficiency and high performance features generate just as much publicity. Articles highlight the performance of the home, the tours mention new technologies and energy performance, and the industry has begun to accept that building a quality home isn’t just about feel-good tactics.
Builders are beginning to understand that it works, and it increases their profit margin by staving off the rash of issues that have risen in the past decade that threaten their business. There’s been a shortage of skilled labor and, perhaps consequently, a rise in customer satisfaction issues that threaten a builder’s reputation and lead to greater callback and warranty expenses. Liability issues from mold and construction defects have gone through the roof. Energy and other building code standards have been stepped up. There’s also been a massive increase in energy and fuel prices, and a strong government push for energy efficiency. All this has led to an increased need for quality homes that are efficient, durable, safe, healthy, and comfortable.
In response to this in 2001, the NCHI began requiring that TNAH® be built to extremely high energy efficiency goals and other high performance targets, because they knew it was important for the industry. Their stance communicates to the industry that energy and performance features are just as important as the architectural design and slick new products and materials that traditionally have taken center stage. IBACOS, through the Department of Energy’s Building America program, has worked with the builders during design and construction to ensure each home meets the performance goals.
“Incorporating such elements as energy efficiency, indoor air quality, safety, and market value is a principle goal of TNAH® program. The mission is to show that housing performance can be incorporated into the most simple or most complex homes, and that it’s equally as important as aesthetics,” said Tucker Bernard, Senior Director of the NCHI.
With these requirements, the NCHI has asked TNAH® builders to push the envelope even further in an already high-pressure situation. Here’s what the builders of TNAH® face: a frustratingly short and tight time frame; designers and manufacturers they may have never worked with; and products and practices they may be unfamiliar with. On top of all this, they’re being asked to build above and beyond Energy Star® levels of efficiency, which often involves using new technologies and materials, as well as changes to construction practices and processes. While this might sound like a recipe for disaster, builders vie for the chance to build TNAH® each year because of the benefits.
The main benefit is loads of good publicity. There were more than two dozen media articles nationwide on TNAH® 2004, all with glowing mention of the builder. And many IBS attendees tour TNAH® each year.
In addition to the publicity, builders get a unique opportunity to learn new ways to build quality homes, without worrying about eating the costs involved with learning curves. In this environment, they can explore which construction practices and technologies work best, and which are economically feasible to incorporate in future homes. This is something valuable to Merlin Contracting & Developing, the builder of TNAH® 2004. As a custom homebuilder, their own bottom line doesn’t matter as much as their customer’s bottom line. “It’s important for us to use our customer’s money as wisely as possible,” said Bart Jones, a principal in Merlin Contracting.
The most valuable part of the TNAH® project for Merlin was two-fold: the knowledge they gained of alternate construction techniques and new building products, and passing that knowledge on to their customers. With their customer’s bottom line in mind, they can’t gamble on products or practices they’re not familiar with. Knowing something they tried through the TNAH® project works—or doesn’t—eliminates guesswork and enables them to confidently make cost effective recommendations to their customers. For example, based on their experience using Insulated Concrete Forms (ICFs) in TNAH® 2004, Merlin Contracting would recommend ICFs. “In fact, recently we did recommend that one client use ICFs for the wall system. This is something we wouldn’t have done before because we’d never used it,” said Bart Jones.
The NCHI’s commitment to quality challenges builders to push the envelope further in the already high-pressure situation of building TNAH®. With the help of the DOE’s Building America Program, builders are successfully meeting the challenge, and learning valuable lessons in the process. The builders and the industry as a whole are seeing that the value added to their business—reduced warranty and callback expenses, reduced liability risk, and increased customer satisfaction—is well worth the effort.
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