Building Products News & TrendsJanuary/February 2008

  • By Sharon O'Malley, Jeffrey Lee, and Steve Zurier
  • Source: BUILDING PRODUCTS Magazine
  • Publication date: 2007-11-08

The latest news, information, and resources on building products, including spotlights on new and innovative product introductions, green building coverage, and tech highlights. This month: Top 10 Green Building Products; Clever Control From Lutron; Changes Coming to Energy Star; Wireless Run-Through; Stain-Resistant Decking Hits the Market; and more.

Green Products

Eco Stars

Against the backdrop of a booming sustainable building movement, BuildingGreen announced the winners of its annual Top 10 Green Building Products. Selected by the editors of the GreenSpec Directory and Environmental Building News, two leading green publications, the winners represent a breadth of product types and green attributes, and they stood out from more than 200 products added to the GreenSpec database in 2007. Check out the rest of the list at www.buildinggreen.com.

Alpen Energy Group. These high-performance fiberglass windows use a combination of suspended low-E Heat Mirror films, low-E coatings, low-iron glass, low-conductivity gas fill, pultruded fiberglass frames insulated in vacuum silica aerogel packets, and low-conductivity glazing spacers to provide 13/8-inch-thick windows with a range of properties to meet different needs. The majority of the company's products are used in projects in which different glazings are used for different wall orientations. 800-882-4466. www.alpeneg.com. Bosch. The 800 series SHE98M line of Evolution dishwashers features the most energy efficient and quietest full-size dishwashers available in the U.S., according to BuildingGreen. The SHE98M model is rated at 190 kWh per year of electricity consumption, has an Energy Factor of 1.14 (148 percent higher than the federal standard and 73 percent higher than the Energy Star requirement), and a noise level of 42 dBA. The dishwasher is also available in the Integra line as the SMX98M model. 800-944-2904. www.boschappliances.com. Caroma. The Cube3 Ultra is an ultra-low-flush urinal that flushes using just 1 pint of water, one-eighth of the water used by standard 1-gpf urinals. It features a bowl that is optimized for very low water use and a liquid-sensing (as opposed to motion-sensing) automatic flush mechanism that prevents false flushes. The high-gloss vitreous china surface minimizes staining and improves sanitation and cleaning. 800-605-4218. www.caromausa.com.

Just how green are the home building and remodeling industries?

A recent survey of builders, remodelers, and architects, conducted by Building Products editors and independent research firm Specpan, found the following:
  • 47 percent consider themselves green.
  • The greatest number of respondents believe green building increases the cost of a home 10 percent to 19 percent.
  • 47 precent believe their market's demand for green-built homes will increase significantly over the next five years.

363

Number of solar panels installed on the roof of 45 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City to reduce the building's electrical consumption and help power the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree.


Continued 1 2 3 Next>