It’ll Cost You! Where Codes Meet Costs

There are lots of passionate individuals and companies in our industry who are working to bring about positive change. Whether developing a new product, testing a new construction technique/method, introducing a new building code provision, or advocating for a new industry policy, cost is always a factor that needs to be considered on the road to innovation. Cost can be the factor that stops a great idea from going forward.

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Shadow Costs: How Outdated Local Processes Stifle the True Solar Market

While PV technology has made considerable gains in terms of cost reduction and increased efficiency over the last decade, often the bureaucracy surrounding it has not. Government often gets credit for growing the solar market through subsidies, but this ignores regulatory hurdles in the way of project completion such as old timey zoning laws, overly burdensome permitting practices, and time-consuming interconnection policies. All of that sticky red tape can stifle PV growth. Check out this guest post from Solar Builder magazine to find out what's being done to overcome these obstacles.

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Builder Survey Data Analysis: Trends in Trim, Insulation, Sheathing, Cabinets

The data is in! Home Innovation’s 2018 Builder Practices Survey continues to reveal many new trends and reversals. Some of the most notable changes we’ve seen so far have been highlighted in my recent Trends posts. Here are a few more points I’ve found interesting during my ongoing analysis…

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Brand Study Paints Very Different Picture of Choices in New Homes and Remodeling

Trends will come and go, but one thing that’s always been consistent about the construction industry and markets for building products is that it is highly fragmented. A product manufacturer’s success in one of the many market segments almost never indicates if they can or will be successful in another market. Buyers of materials have very different purchase journeys, depending on whether it is for a production home, non-residential building, infrastructure project, home remodeling done by a professional, or a do-it-yourself undertaking.

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Hot or Not: How's Your Product's Thermal Performance?

With increasingly stringent energy codes, building product manufacturers are developing new products and innovative construction techniques to improve the thermal envelope. Code officials, builders, and architects want reliable thermal conductivity data. But, without testing, you can't know the U-value of the assembled component. Hot Box testing is a reliable way to capture shareable, marketable data that is far superior to modeled performance.

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Product Certification: Are You Ready for the Challenge?

For many smaller building product manufacturers, simply following best practices and common sense may work most of the time. But, for those looking to grow market share and compete on a regional or national level, that may not be enough. Having a formal quality assurance (QA) system is often the next step in your company's journey to market growth and success; and it is a must for getting your product certified as code compliant.

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True Value: NGBS Green Certification Lauded for Adding Value for Builders and Homeowners

Greenwashing. Unfortunately, it’s not a new form of consumer deception. But, fortunately, there are both new and improving means of shining a light on those who seek to deceive, as well as recognizing and rewarding those who provide true value with high-performance, green building.

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Building Codes and Market Change: Do Codes Lead, Follow, or Coincide with Industry Practice?

Based on my past 25 years of researching innovation in home construction, I’ve seen the impact of building code changes on market and industry practices. Normally, however, it’s industry and market adoption of superior building practices that lead to building code changes.

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Market Segmentation: Precision Helps You Communicate More Effectively

One market, one message, one ad strategy, one set of product options — sounds simple and efficient, doesn’t it? But we all know that’s not how modern marketing works. As marketers get more savvy, and buyers more discerning, lumping everyone into a single bucket is only a simple and efficient way to continue losing ground against competitors. Even “segmenting” your market by Builder, Retailer, or Contractor channels falls short of a strategy that will propel you ahead of competitors and help you make the most of your advertising, marketing, and communications budgets.

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You’re Getting Colder: Market Data Not Always What You Think

Energy codes have more stringent insulating requirements for cooler climates. So, wouldn’t it be logical to assume that a manufacturer offering a new insulation product touting better energy performance should introduce it the cooler, Northern region of the country? Perhaps. But the market doesn’t always play out the way you think it will; the way that seems most logical. As a prime example, Spray Foam Insulation has enjoyed much bigger market share in warmer climates than in cooler (see map below). Using Tableau, Home Innovation’s Builder Practices data can provide insight not readily seen using more traditional methods of analysis.

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