December 12, 2007

Draft ENERGY STAR^® Protocol for
Modular Homes Open for Public Comment

Modular housing is an important and growing segment of the residential market, and ENERGY STAR is a valuable marketing tool for modular builders. However, many modular builders have found the current procedures for qualifying homes for the ENERGY STAR label expensive and difficult to complete.

To encourage more modular companies to embrace ENERGY STAR, MHRA, working under an agreement with the US EPA, has developed an alternative compliance protocol. The protocol was designed to work with the modular building process, streamlining and simplifying the steps to qualify for the ENERGY STAR label. In developing the new protocol, MHRA worked closely with modular builders, experts in the energy field and other ENERGY STAR program stakeholders.

A draft of the alternative compliance process is available for review and comment. The deadline for comments is December 31, 2007. The alternative process will be launched in early 2008.

To download the draft protocol, click here. For questions, please contact Jordan Dentz at jdentz@research-alliance.org.

ENERGY STAR® for
Manufactured Homes Program Update

More than 10,000 ENERGY STAR qualified manufactured homes have been built since the energy efficiency tax credit was passed, generating around $10 million in tax credits for those participating manufacturers. Across the nation, 70 plants are now actively building ENERGY STAR homes.

MHRA welcomes these plants to the ENERGY STAR for Manufactured Homes program:

• Liberty Homes of Syracuse, IN
• Skyline Homes of Leola, PA
• Skyline Homes of Ephrata, PA
• Skyline Homes of Fair Haven, VT

These plants have recently been qualified to produce ENERGY STAR manufactured homes. For a complete list of plants offering ENERGY STAR homes, visit www.mhrahome.org/pages/plantslist.aspx

For questions about the ENERGY STAR for Manufactured Homes program, please contact Gwynne Koch at gkoch@research-alliance.org.

Copyright 2007 All rights reserved. No part of this newsletter may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transcribed in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of MHRA. For comments or questions related to MHRA ENERGY STAR Update, contact Gwynne Koch via e-mail at gkoch@research-alliance.org.