The Energy Department announced winners of the first-ever Housing Innovation Awards, recognizing 46 diverse industry leaders bringing the best in energy efficient building technologies and design to new and older homes and helping households save money. The competition, coordinated by the Energy Department's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, offered rigorous application criteria within four building categories: DOE Challenge Home Builders, Home Performance with ENERGY STAR® Participating Contractors, Excellence in Building Science Educator of the Year, and Building America Top Innovations. The Housing Innovation Awards recognize leading builders, contractors, researchers, national laboratories, and building science organizations who are helping communities across the country save money and energy and are leading the way to affordable, comfortable, zero net-energy ready homes. The Housing Innovation Awards support the Energy Department's commitment to help harness American ingenuity to commercialize and deploy cutting-edge technologies, as well as to promote improving the energy efficiency of the U.S. housing stock. The following entries were presented with Housing Innovation Awards: DOE Challenge Home Builder Awards The DOE Challenge Home Builder Awards are presented to builders who are changing the way homes are designed and constructed. The DOE Challenge Home designation is the symbol of excellence in home building. Only a select group of the top builders in the country meet the extraordinary levels of excellence and quality specified by Energy Department guidelines. Systems Builders

  • Weiss Building & Development, LLC, South Elgin, Illinois [Grand Winner]
  • Clifton View Homes, Whidbey Island, Washington [Winner]
  • Dwell Development, Seattle, Washington [Winner]

Custom Builders

  • Preferred Builders, Inc., Greenwich, Connecticut [Grand Winner]
  • BPC Green Builders, Wilton, Connecticut [Winner]
  • Caldwell & Johnson Custom Builders & Remodelers, North Kingstown, Rhode Island [Winner]
  • e2 Homes, Winter Park, Florida [Winner]
  • Furguson Design & Construction, Inc. , Sagaponack, New York [Winner]
  • StreetScape Development, LLC, Libertyville, Illinois [Winner]
  • Transformations, Inc. , Townsend, Massachusetts [Winner]
  • Weiss Building & Development, LLC, South Elgin, Illinois [Winner]

Production Builders

  • New Town Builders, Denver, Colorado [Grand Winner]
  • Garbett Homes, Salt Lake City, Utah [Winner]
  • KB Home, Los Angeles, California [Winner]
  • Nexus EnergyHomes, Stevensville, Maryland [Winner]
  • Palo Duro Homes, Inc. , Albuquerque, New Mexico [Winner]
  • Transformations, Inc. , Townsend, Massachusetts [Winner]

Affordable Builders

  • Mandalay Homes, Phoenix, Arizona [Grand Winner]
  • Ithaca Neighborhood Housing Services, Ithaca, New York [Winner]
  • Manatee County Habitat for Humanity, Bradenton, Florida [Winner]
  • TC Legend Homes, Bellingham, Washington [Winner]

Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Participating Contractors The award is presented to participating contractors who have demonstrated innovative business practices that mark them as leaders among their peers. They exhibit outstanding professionalism, build strong customer relationships, and apply building science solutions to improve homes. Only contractors that take part in rigorous training, apply the whole-house approach, adhere to program requirements, and continuously improve their workmanship through quality assurance measures can engage with Home Performance with ENERGY STAR as participating contractors.

  • Energy Efficiencies Solutions, Windsor, Connecticut [Winner] Customer Relations and Market Leadership
  • Halco, Phelps, New York [Winner] Market Leadership, Energy Savings, and Sales and Marketing
  • Insulation Technologies, Milwaukee, Wisconsin [Winner] Customer Relations and Energy Savings
  • Powersmith Home Energy Solutions, Copiague, New York [Winner] Market Leadership, Energy Savings, and Sales and Marketing

Excellence in Building Science Education Award The Excellence in Building Science Education Award is presented jointly by the National Consortium of Housing Research Centers (NCHRC) and the Energy Department to advance the state of building science curricula across the United States and Canada. Patrick Huelman, an Associate Extension Professor in the Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering at the University of Minnesota, is being recognized for his exemplary work teaching building science and preparing a generation to produce buildings that are energy efficient, healthy, comfortable, and durable. Building America Top Innovations Recipients were acknowledged for their game changing Building America research achievements. These innovations are helping to guide residential building professionals in moving toward more energy-efficient, healthier, and durable homes. Advanced Technologies and Practices

  • High-Performance Ducts: Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings, Norwalk, Connecticut [Winner]
  • High-Efficiency Furnace Blower: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California [Winner]
  • High-Efficiency Window A/C: National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado [Winner]
  • Next Generation Advanced Framing: Partnership for Home Innovation, Upper Malboro, Maryland [Winner]

House-As-A-System Business Case

  • Zero Net-Energy Ready Single Family Homes: Alliance for Residential Building Innovation, Davis, California [Winner] Building America Partnership for Improved Residential Construction, Orlando, Florida [Winner] Building Science Corporation, Somerville, Massachusetts [Winner] Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings, Norwalk, Connecticut [Winner] IBACOS, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania [Winner] NorthernSTAR Building America Partnership, St. Paul, Minnesota [Winner] Partnership for Home Innovation, Upper Marlboro, Maryland [Winner]

Effective Guidance and Tools

  • Window Replacement, Rehabilitation & Repair Guide: Building Science Corporation, Somerville, Massachusetts [Winner]
  • Quality Management System Guidelines: Building Science Corporation, Somerville, Massachusetts [Winner] IBACOS, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania [Winner] Partnership for Home Innovation, Upper Marlboro, Maryland [Winner]
  • Building America Solution Center: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington [Winner]
  • Exterior Rigid Insulation Best Practices: Building Science Corporation, Somerville, Massachusetts [Winner] NorthernSTAR Building America Partnership, St. Paul, Minnesota [Winner] Partnership for Home Innovation, Upper Marlboro, Maryland [Winner]

Infrastructure Development

  • Standardized Data Sharing System (HPXML): National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado [Winner]

The Housing Innovation Awards support industry for achievements in energy efficiency research, innovation, and success. See more information on the Energy Department's broader efforts to help buildings across the U.S. save money by saving energy, make our businesses more competitive, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.