Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

Thank you for a wonderful year in 2008! We wish all of our suppliers, dealers, and customers a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

Profitable in a down market???

2008 has been quite a year for the sustainable sectors of the construction industry. The slow-down and eventual recession has been the proverbial double-edged sword for many. Higher energy prices (overall) have driven consumers to become better educated and more informed of new and better technology. The credit crunch has forced businesses to get more creative and cut the fat in operations. And the companies that are focused on energy efficiency, recyclable materials, and environmentally friendly practices are seeing record growth....even in a down market.

We in the structural insulated panel industry have seen more people look to SIPs for residential and commercial structures than ever before. This trend has not been industry driven. Instead, the consumer has sought us out. This has caused us to refocus and look at who we are targeting with our marketing dollars.

Last week I blogged about the extreme cold temperatures many parts of the country are facing right now. Even with crude oil prices down and SUV travel temporarily up, the monthly heating bill still tends to sting a little without any measures taken to reduce consumption at the thermostat. Our structures utilize EPS (expanded polystyrene) foam as both structural and insulating material. Think of SIPs like living or working in a styrofoam cooler. Because we are air-tight and do not let moisture from penetrating, it takes less work for the heating/cooling systems to, well, heat & cool. This means fewer dollars going up in smoke when the temps plunge to sub-zero levels.

We have appreciated all of your business throughout the year. We also look forward to growing our business by doing the little things right. This means staying true to energy-efficient structures and continually taking care of our customers, distributors, and business partners.

Merry Christmas to you all!

When it's this cold, a warm house matters!

We in South Dakota are currently experiencing what some people call "bitter cold." This is a time of year when some people can literally see their heating bills go up in thin air. High energy bills at this time of year can be quite large, depending on the structure you are trying to heat.

Energy Star says there are two reasons for high heating bills in the winter. The first is the old adage of supply vs. demand. The other is inefficient components of your house or office building. They have compiled a checklist for homeowners to review to help bring your energy bills back down to earth.

Prescription Checklist:

1.) To get started today use our Home Improvement Tools to score your home’s energy use and generate a customized list of improvement. You will need one year of your utility bills handy.

2.) For best results hire a contractor who is an energy specialist to do an in-home evaluation. A good specialist will use diagnostic equipment to evaluate the performance of your home and generate a customized list of improvements.

3.) Improvements may include sealing air leaks, adding insulation (Home Sealing) or sealing duct air leaks. Some of these you can do yourself, but you may prefer to hire a contractor.

4.) Turn down the temperature on your water heater to 120 degrees F.

5.) Replace the light bulbs in your highest usage lights with ENERGY STAR CFL bulbs.

6.) When replacing lighting or appliances look for ENERGY STAR qualified light fixtures and appliances

7.) Install an ENERGY STAR qualified programmable thermostat, and use it to save energy while you are away at work.

8.) Contact your utility and ask if they offer any programs to help lower energy bills.

The R-Value Myth

Just about every project that I come across, at some point in time, I am asked what the "R-Value" of a structural insulated panel is. The answer that is given is based on testing data that is accurate based on the structure of the test, but there is so much left to the proverbial "reading between the lines" that it is hard for an average consumer to decipher between accurate data and marketing fluff.

I have found two resources that I would like to share with you. The first is a book written by David B. South entitled "The "R" Fairy Tale, The Myth of Insulation Values". In chapter 4 of his book, Mr. South writes,

"The R-value is a modern fairy tale. It's a fairy tale that has been so touted to the American consumer that it now has a chiseled in-stone status. But the saddest part of this fairy tale is that the R-value by itself is almost a worthless number. It is impossible to define an insulation with a single number. To do so, we must know more. So why do we allow the R-value fairy tale to perpetuate? I don't know. I don't know if anybody knows. What we do know is that the R-value fairy tale obviously favors fiber insulation. Consider the R-value of an insulation after it has been submersed in water or as a 20 mile-per-hour wind blows through it. In either of these scenarios, the R-value of fiber insulation goes to zero. But those same conditions barely affect solid insulations. That's why I believe that R-value numbers are misleading, meaningless numbers unless we know other characteristics."
Further in the chapter, Mr. South eludes to the benefits of an airtight structure and the benefits of hardboard insulation. He writes:
"The test used to produce the k-value is an ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) test. This ASTM test was designed by a committee to give us measurement values that -- they hoped -- would be meaningful. Unfortunately, the test was designed with a flaw or bias. Because of the way it's designed, the test favors fiber insulations: fiberglass, rock wool and cellulose fiber. Very little input went into the test for solid insulations, such as foam glass, cork, expanded polystyrene or urethane foam. Nor does the test account for air movement (wind) or any amount of moisture (water vapor). In other words, the test used to create the R-value is a test in non-real-world conditions. For instance, fiberglass is generally assigned an R-value of approximately 3.5. It will only achieve that R-value if tested in an absolute zero wind and zero moisture environment. Zero wind and zero moisture are not real-world. Our houses leak air, all our buildings leak air, and they often leak water. Water vapor from the atmosphere, showers, cooking, breathing, etc. constantly moves back and forth through walls and ceilings. If an attic is not properly ventilated, water vapor from inside a house will very quickly semi-saturate the insulation above the ceilings. Even small amounts of moisture will cause a dramatic drop in a fiber insulation's R-value — as much as 50 percent or more."

The second resource I'd like to share with you is a website created by Randy L. Martin. His site, www.coloradoenergy.org, was designed to be the place to start when looking for energy efficiency or renewable energy information for Colorado. This all inclusive web site will point you to energy efficiency or renewable energy organizations or companies within the state of Colorado. It will also provide you with information you need to make your home or business more energy efficient.

For an list of independantly tested R-values of materials (and remember to go further than this), check out. http://coloradoenergy.org/procorner/stuff/r-values.htm

The point is that there is more to an energy efficient structure than just how well the insulation tested in a perfectly controlled environment. Today's consumers are becoming more educated about energy efficient construction methods. Those businesses (architects & construction firms) that are not building "the same ol' way because that's what they've done for years" are seeing explosive growth in a down construction market.

Rock Hill Trails has begun!

We are proud to announce that the first Enercept SIP home in the Rock Hill Trails development in Wood River, IL is standing and on track for completion. Rock Hill Trails is a master planned community with a goal of low impact on the surrounding environment while providing a strong sense of community.

This project is a three phase development. The first phase includes both single and multi-family residential neighborhoods, light retail/commercial development, and utilizes native grasses and bio-zones to minimize the environmental impact of the development. According to Wellspring Development Corp., "First, the overall layout is dictated by the natural water flows across the property. Honoring natural water flows not only provides for dryer homes and basements, but allows for a more efficient handling of storm water runoff. Bioswales and strategically distributed bio-detention areas are used to slow the flow of water and remove surface pollutants prior to entering streams, rivers, and lakes."

This is a development by Wellspring Development Corporation. The general contractor is Trumpet Builders, LLC. The SIP installation and management was completed by ECOS Materials. For further information, visit www.rockhilltrails.com. Tyler Morgan of ECOS Materials can be reached at www.ecosmaterials.com or (314) 249-7229.

Green Roofs

Is a green roof right for you? By the way, I am not referring to the color of your shingles.

A green roof is a roof that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and soil (or other growing medium) that is planted over a waterproofing membrane.

In August I had the opportunity to see a green roof for the first time at McCrory Gardens in Brookings, SD. Enercept provided the roof panels for this straw bale structure, "The Children's Gardening & Outdoor Education Center" and we were invited to the dedication ceremony. I was not aware of their plans to install a green roof over our panels and was pleasantly surprised at this discovery.

Having never seen a green roof first hand I found it very interesting. They first installed a typical roof, with standard 3-tab shingles, then added a rubber membrane and installed the 4'x4' green roof packs on top of that. The soil is a gravel-type soil which, according to David Graper - head of the horticulture, forestry, landscape and parks department at South Dakota State University, takes about 2 1/2 inches of rain before it even drains. The plants used were a 'sedum' varienty which are drought resistant and hardy enough to survive South Dakota winters. Mr. Graper is also going to look at plants that are native to South Dakota to see if they will work.

There are many benefits to installing a green roof like the reduction of heating (by adding mass and thermal resistance value) and cooling (by evaporative cooling) loads on a building, the reduction of stormwater run off, filtering pollutants and CO2 out of the air, and prividing an additional habitat for wildlife.

Other examples of green roofs can be found at the Ford Motor Company's River Rouge Plant in Dearborn, MI, Chicago's City Hall and Gap headquarters in San Bruno, CA.

Before you start your green roof project you'll want to make sure your existing roof can handle the weight load and keep in mind that maintenance costs could be higher.

For more information check out http://www.greenroofs.org/

Have some worms over for dinner...

Have you ever thought about how many pounds of food scraps go into your garbage can every week? I never had until we had kids. We were throwing out half eaten sandwiches, half-chewed broccoli, and banana peels like they were going out of style. My wife was watching the Discovery Channel's Planet Green (great channel) and discovered (no pun intended) the power of worms.

Red worms have the power to turn your every day non-protien food scraps into highly enriched compost. According to Washington State University, "worms eat fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds and tea leaves (filter and bags go in, too), grains, pasta, and breads that aren't "polluted." Worm bin pollutants include oils and animal products: meat, fish, butter, cheese, and sauces. "

The best type of worm condo is an enclosed worm box. This contraption was quite new to me a few weeks ago, but basically it is a box, with some organic brown matter (soil, grass clippings, etc.), red worms, and your daily food scraps. It is important to note that a tightly fitting lid is necessary to keep rodents & bugs at bay.

Usually wooden boxes made of plywood are used. If you are using a plastic bin, be sure to add both drainage and aeration holes. Never use a container which has been used for storing toxic chemicals. Start by putting bedding in the worm box. Corrugated cardboard, news-print and newspapers shredded in strips four inches long by 1 inch wide make excellent bedding. The worms need some grit for breaking down their food. Add a little topsoil for this purpose. Put the worms on top of the bedding.

In you'll be on vacation, just feed the worms a bit extra and leave them undisturbed until you return. Obviously there can be a population control issue with multiplying organisms eating all your food scraps. Red worms double in population approximately every three months. At that time, you can sell your worms to another earth-minded individual, or go fishing! Trout love red worms!!!

Going Green Off The Grid

"Zero Energy Building" and "Going Off The Grid"; expect to hear those phrases more and more frequently.

But what do they mean and are they the same thing?
According to Wikipedia:

"Zero Energy Buildings" (ZEBs), at least in the United States, are when the amount of energy provided by on-site sources is equal to the amount of energy used by the building. They are still connected to an off-site energy source and sometimes sell energy back to the utility company.

"Off The Grid" buildings are stand-alone ZEBs - not connected to an off-site energy utility facility. They require distributed renewable energy generation and energy storage capability.

Either way owning a building with a net energy consumption of zero over a typical year would be nice. Imagine not only having your home paid for by the time you retire, but also having your utilities paid for...it would make those senior years a little easier to enjoy.

Doug Rempel in Canada is building his home with this in mind. Visit his blog and see how Enercept structural insulated roof panels are playing a key role in his new home: http://goinggreenoffthegrid.wordpress.com/

It's been awhile since I've posted. Below is an excerpt from an article published by the USGBC regarding building green schools in the 21st century. Happy reading....

Why green schools?

20% of America goes to school every day. More than a quarter of these students and teachers attend schools that are considered substandard or dangerous to occupant health.
Public and private schools alike are realizing that going green is a no-brainer. On average, green schools save $100,000 per year – enough to hire two new teachers, buy 200 new computers or purchase 5,000 new textbooks.

If all new school construction and school renovations went green starting today, energy savings alone would total more than $20 billion over the next 10 years.By promoting the design and construction of green schools, we can make a tremendous impact on student health, test scores, teacher retention, school operational costs and the environment.

Benefits of green schools
A healthy, productive learning environment
Improved teacher retention
Financial savings
Hands-on learning
Environmentally friendly

Certify your Green Building

LEED certification provides independent, third-party verification that a building project meets the highest green building and performance measures. All certified projects receive a LEED plaque, which is the nationally recognized symbol demonstrating that a building is environmentally responsible, profitable and a healthy place to live and work.

There are both environmental and financial benefits to earning LEED certification.
LEED-certified buildings:
*Lower operating costs and increased asset value.
*Reduce waste sent to landfills.
*Conserve energy and water.
*Healthier and safer for occupants.
*Reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions.
*Qualify for tax rebates, zoning allowances and other incentives in hundreds of cities.
*Demonstrate an owner's commitment to environmental stewardship.

Eligibility
Commercial buildings as defined by standard building codes are eligible for certification under the LEED for New Construction, LEED for Existing Buildings, LEED for Commercial Interiors, LEED for Retail, LEED for Schools and LEED for Core & Shell rating systems. Building types include – but are not limited to – offices, retail and service establishments, institutional buildings (e.g., libraries, schools, museums and religious institutions), hotels and residential buildings of four or more habitable stories.

If you are unsure whether your building project is a candidate for LEED certification, review the LEED Rating System Checklist that applies to your project to tally a potential point total. Your project is a viable candidate for certification if it meets all prerequisites and can achieve the minimum number of points necessary to earn the Certified level.

Visit the LEED Rating System section to find the Rating System Checklist applicable to your project.

This article can be found on the U.S. Green Building Council's website at: http://www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CMSPageID=64

Now FSC Certified

I wanted to let you know that we have met the qualifications and are now able to offer FSC Certified lumber and OSB. Lumber certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) has been harvested from forests that meet stringentenvironmental, social and economic standards.

FSC has offices in more than 46 countries. It provides standard setting, trademark assurance and accreditation services for companies and organizations interested in responsible forestry.
Products carrying the FSC label are independently certified to assure consumers that they come from forests that are managed to meet the social, economic and ecological needs of present and future generations.

FSC tracks the use of these forest products from their planting & harvest through the final use in a given building project. We have found that FSC products are be specified more and more frequently in green building projects (including LEED projects).

FSC lumber and OSB is another option to Enercept SIP panels -and there is some additional cost for this option. We will alsocontinue to provide panels without the certification at the regularprice.

If you have any questions about FSC forest products please contact me at (800) 658-3303 or jquinn@enercept.com, or visit the FSC website at http://www.fsc.org/.

Submitted by: Roberta Bartel, Marketing Manager Enercept, Inc.
Contact Roberta at (800) 658-3303 with any questions.

Structural Insulated Panels, not just boxes...

Structural Insulated Panels, aka SIPs, are an alternative to tradional construction methods. SIPs have been tested to be approximately 2 1/2 times stronger than traditional stick-framed construction. SIPs are will also cut heating/cooling bills by 40-60%.

A structural insulated panel consists of a foam core "sandwiched" by sheeting material, typically OSB (oriented strand board) or plywood. Alternative materials have also been used as sheeting. The lamination of these products into a solid core building material provides both strength and a thermal barrier to prevent heat loss.

A building utilizing SIPs is environmentally friendly not only due to the energy efficiency, but also due to the fact that very little wood is utilized in SIP construction. A traditionally framed structure will consist of approximately 24% solid wood. The same structure utilizing SIPs will contain approximately 3% solid wood. SIPs require little or no harvesting of old growth forests to create larger framing members.

Many customers just learning about SIPs hear the word "panel" and think that they can only create boxes. The fact is that construction with SIPs is only limited by your imagination. A few photos are enclosed show the creative possibilities that can happen while building green.

To find out more about SIPs, visit www.sips.org or www.enercept.com.

What IS green construction?

What is green building?
Green buildings (sustainable buildings) are buildings that meet present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. They are designed to use environmental resources wisely. Green building employs materials and methods which reduce the depletion of non-renewable resources, and encourages innovations like recycling and pollution reduction.

Simply stated, Green buildings:* conserve energy and water* use resource-efficient materials* promote good indoor air quality* are integrated into the building site

According to the NAHB, 14,600 green homes were built in 2004, up from 2,500 in 2000.

Energy Efficiency
Key to green building is the reduction of energy consumption. Energy consumption occurs both in the operation of the home and in the production of the materials used to build the home.
Enercept uses OSB as the interior and exterior sheathing for our Structural Insulated Panels. OSB is an engineered wood product that is considered environmentally friendly because it is produced from fast growing, underutilized and less expensive trees grown on tree farms.

The Enercept system utilizes up to 80% recycled EPS (expanded polystyrene) insulation. A University of South Dakota test in 1984 found "No formaldehyde contained in the Enercept insulation". This has been the problem plaguing FEMA trailers used for “temporary” housing after Hurricane Katrina, among many other disasters.

What is R-Value?
The measure of the capacity of a material, such as insulation, to impede heat flow, with increasing values indicating a greater capacity. Colorado Energy.org features an R-Value table that is worth checking out. You can estimate the cost savings and greenhouse gas reductions you'll get by upgrading your insulation at Build It Solar.com

How can you plan your green building project? Pick a couple of green strategies and focus on them. Experts say energy efficiency is your best bet. Evaluate the payback of features carefully. Design with passive solar gain in mind. Use Enercept SIPS to create a tight envelope.

For more information about green building visit the Green Building Initiative website, www.enercept.com, or http://www.linkedin.com/in/buildgreen







Enercept, Inc., Custom SIPs Manufacturer, (800) 658-3303
3100 9th Ave SE Watertown, SD 57201
“Building today for a greener tomorrow.”


Joe Quinn
Regional Sales Manager
Enercept, Inc.