RESTalk

"Positive attitude plus effort equals performance." Tommy Tuberville As we hear more about droughts, what is the impact on residential new construction?   Why did KB Home feel it was important to commit to the WaterSense label for all future home builds in Arizona, California, and Nevada?   How is KB Home using RESNET's HERSH2O water efficiency rating system to address water consumption without sa...

"The hidden harmony is better than the obvious." Heraclitus   Earlier this year RESNET was approved as a Home Certification Organization (HCO) for the California ENERGY STAR Homes Program by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).   What are the roots of this partnership with CalCERTS?   Who will benefit from this harmony?   What benefits will evolve for the parties involved? We are joined toda...

"Sustainability is no longer about doing less harm. It's about doing more good." Jochen Zeitz How is the topic of energy efficiency in new single-family homes addressed in the mortgage industry?   What pillars of ESG (Environmental, Social & Governance) are at play in this system and who are the players? We are joined on today's podcast by Simone Beaty who is the Director of Housing Policy with Fr...

"Passion is what gives meaning to our lives. It's what allows us to achieve success beyond our wildest imagination.  Try to find a career path you have a passion for." Henry Samueli The RESNET ecosystem continues to grow and morph as demand increases and external factors change.   What new opportunities exist for those already in or considering entering the world of home energy ratings?   Are ther...

"The details are not the details. They make the design." Charles Eames HVAC equipment is often the largest energy consuming system in a home.   While listeners are likely grounded in the aspect of "house as a system," where does the rubber meet the road when it comes to HVAC system design? In today's podcast, we begin part one of a three-part series on cracking open the details of the ANSI/RESNET/...

"It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has the data." Arthur Conan Doyle   Details make the difference to builders and their customers, really to the whole new home construction industry. Trends emerge when one studies HERS rating details over a large national dataset and over time. What kind of theories can we draw from data in "Trends in HERS Rated Homes, 2022"? RESNET's Program Directo...

"The minute you decide to do what you love to do, you have made a life plan for yourself and a career choice"   Huda Kattan   What are the perspectives of those new to the building industry?   RESNET's Emerging Leadership Council (ELC) Fellows program provides recognition for future leaders.   What are some of the reasons they got "noticed"?   How do this year's ELC Fellows feel about the work the...

"Anytime we step boldly to make changes, we take a chance that we might fail. But the only way to get better is to try." -Joyce Meyer   How do you define sustainable home building? What will sustainable home building look like in 2022? Where can you get a handle on data to help drive your decisions in this area? What are the bold steps you can take? RESTALK is pleased to welcome back Sara Gutterma...

"A creative man is motivated by the desire to achieve, Not by the desire to beat others " -Ayn Rand   What's it like in the rating world north of our border? What are some of things that the Canadian Raters do that parallel or differ from what is done in the US? What can we learn from our neighbors to the north though a cross border challenge?  The Cross Border Challenge is an annual event sponsor...

"Science does not know its debt to imagination. " -Ralph Waldo Emerson    More and more we hear of the impact of carbon on our society and environment. Recent data says that operational carbon (the carbon that comes from energy, heat, lighting, etc. ) is becoming less of a factor. Now. attention is now shifting to embodied carbon - the carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions associated with materials and c...

"Leaders don't create followers; they create more leaders. " -Tom Peters    Employee retention is a hot topic as 1/3 of new employees leave their job after about 6 months. Additionally, over 70% of employers are having a tough time recruiting skilled candidates. How does RESNET's Emerging Leadership Council (ELC) work to address these challenges? How can membership in the ELC help to shape someone...

"I hope to continue to inspire our nation's youth to pursue careers in science, technology engineering, and math so they, too, may reach for the stars."  - Ellen Ochoa (American engineer, former astronaut, and former director of the Johnson Space Center) The percentage of women in the construction industry grew from 9.9 percent in 2018, to 10.9 percent in 2020 marking a recent steady increase in w...

"You can have data without information, but you cannot have information without data. -Daniel Keys Moran   Time marches on. And so do the changes in the demographics of buyers. What are the characteristics of home buyers, especially those that buy HERS rated homes? How can those in the HERS industry align with the factors important to the new wave of home buyers? We are back with Ryan Meres, Progr...

"The fun for me in collaboration is, one, working with other people just makes you smarter; that's proven." -Lin-Manuel Miranda   There are some distinct megatrends that will increase the number of NetZero homes. How is the ICC facilitating the drive to Net Zero homes? How is RESNET collaborating with ICC on this topic? We are joined today by two executives from the International Code Council (ICC...

"Collaboration is a key part of the success of any organization, executed through a clearly defined vision and mission and based on transparency and constant communication." -Dinesh Paliwal   In simplest terms, what path is RESNET on? What is the RESNET mission? How are the goals crafted that align with and fulfill the mission? How are priorities and budgets set so these goals are achieved? Both J...

" For me, conferences are like little mental vacations: a chance to go visit an interesting place for a couple of days, and come back rested and refreshed with new ideas and perspectives." -Erin McKean   Con-fer-ence: a large official meeting, usually lasting for a few days, at which people with the same work or interests come together to discuss their views.           Check. From the Latin confer...

" Whether it's the best of times or the worst of times, It's the only time we've got." - Art Buchwald    23 episodes, 23 topics and 22 different guests. We covered a lot of ground in the RESTalk podcast in 2021. We hope we stimulated your thinking and moved you into action in this sometimes complex world of home energy ratings. If you'd like to dig a little deeper into the topics covered in these...

" Most decisions are not binary, and there are usually better answers waiting to be found  if you do the analysis and involve the right people." -Jamie Dimon    The topics of real time data and data analytics are discussed in many businesses circles these days. As the RESNET Board and Quality Assurance (QA) team charts a path to move RESNET QA from the gold standard to platinum, data analytics wil...

"Women are the real architects of society." -Cher    By some estimates, women make up only about 10 percent of those employed in the construction industry. What would it take to design and build a home solely by women? Would there be enough interest, enough women available in one area?   We are joined by Natalie Miles ( project manager and designer for Wardley Homes) and Katy Higgins (owner of Blu...

"Good legislation should bring clarity, not confusion." -Bill Haslam    The Federal Tax Credit for Builders of Energy Efficient Homes, commonly known as 45L, in some ways remains an artifact of old thinking. How much has technology and performance in housing advanced in the last 15 years? What can you do to stay informed, aware and exert influence to improve what could be a significant motivator f...

"I'm an instant star. Just add water (rating) and stir." -David Bowie   Housing consumers show increasing interest in environmental impact. Logically, builders are following this trend to serve their customers. How can raters and RFIs build on this momentum to become a star serving both builders and their customers? We welcome back RESNET's program director Ryan Meres to fill us in on why raters s...

"You can expect what you inspect." -W. Edwards Deming    Which "appliance" in a house usually consumes the most energy? Which "appliance" in a house is constructed from multiple components that have never run before they are assembled on site? Wouldn't it be great if a terrific installation of said "appliance" gained you some HERS points? (Forgive my relative misuse of the word appliance – I neede...

"Words are but the pictures of our thoughts." -John Dryden    Stanley Martin Homes was founded in 1966 utilizing fresh new designs and continues to innovate today. They focus on people, via constant training and clear communications, including continual dialog with PEG, their partner rating firm. How do both companies benefit from a relationship such as this? What are some of the inner workings th...

" A man with a watch knows what time it is. A man with two watches is never sure ." -Segal's Law  Consistency is important when it comes time to rely on…anything.   A key to ensuring the quality of HERS ratings is the software calculation consistency of the HERS score.  Too often in the past, the same home could receive a different score based upon the software program being used. What actions has...

"The key to everything is patience.  You get the chicken by hatching the egg, not by smashing it." -Arnold H. Glasgow    The ANSI/RESNET/ICC Standard 850 was developed over the course of years via consensus input from over 75 organizations. The standard was first issued in 2020 and is now seeing increasing use. Several steps needed to take place before the California Energy Commission's accredited...