My New Cork Pen .. Am I helping?

This weekend I received a beautiful roller ball pen that is made from real cork.  It’s like the one in this photo except its cork instead of bamboo (apparently mine isn’t on their site for some reason)  It is beautiful, writes awesome & they donate a percentage of the sale to save the rainforest.  Which later made me think of the irony.  Donating a percentage to replace what they cut down to make my pen?  Althought I’ve been told cork is an extremely renewable resource that grows quickly hopefully…..

 

Green Building Up 30%

As the residential construction industry plummets, the green building sector continues its strong performance.  As I posted a few weeks ago, this was evidenced by the outstanding turnout at the Greenbuild Expo.  Further backing up the trend is this new article from Globest.com (thanks for the info Fred)

What does this mean for the economy?  Optimism can again show its face.  Green construction means not only more jobs staying at home in the U.S but it also leads to significant energy savings to the retailers who are on the band wagon.

Most of all it shows that people are still willing to pay top dollar up front if it will mean savings down the road.

 

Photovoltaic Incentives

What incentives are there for Texas homeowners outside of Austin for photovoltaic systems?  I stumbled across this website today with some information on rebates available.  Local solar installers are popping up state wide.  It never hurts to get a quote

Home Photovoltaic Systems
Photovoltaic systems must provide electricity for the residence, and must meet applicable fire and electrical code requirement. The tax credit is for 30 percent of the cost of the system, up to $2,000. This credit is not limited to the $500 home improvement cap.

 

USGBC Texas Style

How can you stay on top of local green construction events & information?  There are many fantastic organizations out there to join.  Right here in Texas we have 3 USGBC chapters.  We are members of the Central Balcones chapter which covers a large territory from Midland & San Angelo through Central Texas.  Other chapters are in Houston & Dallas.

Why should you consider joining one of these organizations?  Besides having a lot of fun at chapter events, it gives you the chance to connect with others in the community who are passionate about energy efficient & environmentally friendly construction techniques.  Many of the members are architects & builders.  Its a great chance to network.

So pick the organization closest to you and support green construction in your city!

 

Eco-Max Press Release

On the Greenbuild Note ….. Here is a press release from one of our partner manufacturer’s.  This is a new product on the wall side of things that has nothing to do with us but is cool nonetheless …. Enjoy! Rmax’s New Eco-Max® Features Renewable Chemistry for LEED Credits

	NewswireToday – /newswire/ – Dallas, TX, United States, 11/13/2008 – Dallas-based manufacturer of polyiso insulated building products, today announced the immediate availability of its new Eco-Max® wall insulation product that qualifies for LEED building credits due to its renewable chemistry.
	Eco-Max is the first polyisocyanurate wall insulation product to contain a minimum of eight percent rapidly renewable Natural Oil Polyol. It marks the latest breakthrough in the company’s 30-year history as a polyiso insulation manufacturer. “Eco-Max is the green insulation product our industry has been waiting for,” said Ed Godlewski, Rmax president. “We have begun shipping the product from our Fernley, Nevada manufacturing plant and plan to begin distribution out of our Texas and South Carolina plants early next year.” The product was designed for commercial cavity walls, masonry, residential stud walls and cathedral ceilings in new and retrofit construction applications. Eco-Max has zero ozone depletion (ODP) and negligible global warming potential (GWP). It also meets new ASHRAE 90.1 standards. The product is available in thicknesses from 0.75” to 3”, with thermal R-values ranging from 4.3 to 16.2, as determined by ASTM C518 test method. “No other wall insulation on the market combines the renewable chemistry and high thermal characteristics of our new Eco-Max product,” Godlewski said. “In fact, Eco-Max provides the highest thermal resistance per inch of any comparable insulation product available today.” For more details regarding Rmax or its new environmentally responsible. Eco-Max wall insulation product, contact the company at 1-800-527-0890 or visit the website.

 

Greening Up At Greenbuild

What a week we had at Greenbuild in Boston!  With more than 700 exhibitors and 25,000+ employees attendees, the event was truly amazing.  The aisles were packed!  We had a great time with Drew, Tara & Linda at our Protect-All Flooring/Duro-Last Roofing booths.  Some of the neat items we discovered were VOC free organic paint stained with fruits & vegetables, photovoltaic skylights & recycled plastic messenger bags along with a lot more.

Along the way we learned to navigate the less than user friendly Boston public transportation system including trains, buses & shuttles. Chowda was eaten & lobsters were, well, whatever you call it when you suck the meat out of them.  In the end, we had a great time.  Before leaving we were on the fence about Phoenix next year.  But we left completely convinced that Greenbuild is the future.

 

Cool Ideas From MRCA

Last week we attended the Midwest Roofing Contractors conference in Dallas, Texas (I know thats not the midwest but hey maybe their map was wrong)  Along with seeing some great energy saving products, we attended a facinating lecture on photovoltaics by William Miller of Oak Ridge Labs.

Two points to share -#1  if HVAC ductwork were ran inside airconditioned space instead of our attics we would be saving millions in energy costs.  So what can be done besides rebuilding our houses?  Insulate!  Cover the ducts in insulation to the point they cannot be seen.

#2 Solar panels on white roofs in the south may not be as good of an idea as we all think.  The rooftop temperature of photovoltaics can soar to more than 165 degrees on white rooftops that normally are near ambient.  The energy loss of heating the white membrane can offset the solar output.  Solution?  Analyze each situation, however putting the solar panels on the ground probably makes a lot more sense.

Well thats all for now ….See you at Greenbuild!

 

Are You Going To GreenBuild This Year?

Only 16 days until Greenbuild!  This year we invade Boston, Massachusetts, with the hope of learning, networking, and sharing enthusiasm for greening the world.  Have any opinions on what to do or where to go?  Share here!

 

How Software Is Saving the Planet

Today we attended a very interesting seminar about new control systems that are saving school districts thousands of dollars in heating and cooling costs per year.  The system demonstrated by Honeywell could literally tell the maintenance team how long one of the cooler doors was open down to the microsecond.

This reminded me of my friend Houston Neal from Software Advice.com who emailed me recently about several awesome products he discovered at the recent CMAA conference in San Francisco.  One such item was 4D Project management software developed in a collaboration between Google SketchUp and Synchro.  Check out the video by clicking here.

How does this software save the planet you ask?  Simple – by reducing the consumption of construction materials like wood, steel & concrete we reduce our carbon footprint and save money.  Also reduced are transportation expenses which also lessens our pollution output.

Also impressive is Google SketchUp’s service to solar integrators which allows them to choose the perfect location to install photovoltaics through 4D technology.

The long and short of it is software is changing the way we live our lives.  Research and choose the solution that fits you best.

Another great resource for construction companies looking to be more productive is Construction Software Advice website.  There you can find many options to be more efficient and add to your bottom line.  Plus you’ll be supporting a great company

 

Duro-Last Joins the Bloggesphere

Duro-Last Roofing Inc has introduced a new addition to the ever expandng Duro-last website … a blog!  We excitedly await how the marketing team will fill the posts with current information on the roofing industry.  Please visit and let them know your comments by clicking here.

Cheers!