Corporate

July 10, 2006

Advanced Energy joins Habitat for Builder Blitz

RALEIGH – In the third-annual nationwide builder blitz, 400 low-income families nationwide moved into affordable homes, courtesy of Habitat for Humanity. The 33 homes built in the triangle region were part of Advanced Energy’s SystemVision program. Advanced Energy, with funding from the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency, helped Durham, Orange, Chatham and Wake Habitat for Humanity ensure that all of their blitz homes would be healthy, safe, durable, comfortable and energy efficient.

Under the SystemVision program, a rigorous set of energy-efficiency guidelines are applied to the whole house and Advanced Energy guarantees savings to the homeowner. Depending on many factors such as square-footage of the home, savings fluctuate between $28/month to $42/month. If the actual heating and cooling amount exceeds the guarantee Advanced Energy pays the overage cost to homeowners.

"We feel it’s important that homeowners are able to afford their home, and it’s just as important that homeowners can also pay their monthly bills," said Jonathan Coulter, an Advanced Energy building science associate. This year alone, SystemVision has saved each participating homeowner nearly $112. Furthermore, about 1,000 homes statewide have been built in the SystemVision program.

Prior to the week long Blitz, Advanced Energy attended several Habitat for Humanity meetings to talk with builders and find ways to meet SystemVision requirements with such limited time. The week of the Blitz, Advanced Energy employees, along with other local home performance companies, verified these techniques were correctly implemented during construction. Collectively, six Advanced Energy employees spent 200 hours at the Blitz ensuring SystemVision requirements were achieved.

Advanced Energy’s strives to improve the health, safety, durability, comfort and energy efficiency of houses and small commercial buildings nationwide. This is achieved by providing training, consultation, applied research and of course, SystemVision. The $1,500 upgrades needed to build to these standards are generously met through a $4,000 grant from the N.C. Housing Finance Agency (NCHFA). For the past four years, Advanced Energy has collaborated with 29 Habitats and 24 other non-profit developers across North Carolina to help incorporate SystemVision in their affordable housing.

More on Builder Blitz
To honor Tom Gibson, the creator of the builder blitz model, the national launch and dedication occurred in the founding location (Wake County, N.C). "We are so proud that a program developed right here in Wake County will lead to more than 500 more families experiencing the joys of homeownership," said Woody Yates, Wake Habitat’s executive director. The event drew to a close Sat. June 10th when a dedication ceremony was held at the construction site. Families received official house keys and a bible. Families also presented builders with plaques for their hard work during the week.