Are You Ready for Phase Two?
Pricing Changes and Commercial Products Added to DOE High-Performance Windows Program
by Terry Mapes

Phase one of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) High-Performance Windows Volume Purchase Program concluded this spring and some significant changes have been included for phase two. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), which manages the program for DOE, has prepared a number of changes for the transition to the next phase, which began in May 2011. While the foundation of the program remains relatively unchanged, PNNL is employing several new strategies to continue the momentum built during the program’s first full year of implementation. The program helps buyers and manufacturers develop a market for highly insulating windows and low-E storm windows at affordable prices and thereby
overcome the principal barrier of cost.

Adding Commercial Products
Among the additions being made to the program are the inclusion of commercial products. While these products were never explicitly excluded, the specifications in phase one were designed specifically with residential windows in mind, and resulting U-factor requirements precluded most commercial windows from qualifying.

Under the new specifications residential (R) and light commercial (LC) windows will have the same U-factor requirement as phase one (0.20 for fixed/0.22 for operable windows) while commercial windows (CW: U= 0.24/0.27) and architectural windows (AW: U= 0.27/0.32) will have less stringent requirements due to their higher structural integrity. As a result of these changes, DOE has decided to discontinue the use of the term R-5 in the program’s title, but understands that the term likely will continue to be used colloquially throughout the industry for residential products.

Also, a condensation resistance (CR) requirement of 50 has been added for all windows, and this number was chosen specifically to ensure that double-pane products would perform according to consumer expectations.

Finally, storm window products now will need to be included in a certification program in the same way as primary windows. DOE officials always have felt that these certification programs are a key component to raising the overall expectations of window performance beyond simply manufacturing a product with a lower U-factor. Several organizations contacted DOE during phase one and relied on the program’s quality assurance installments to develop their own lists of eligible vendors from whom to buy products.

The phase one solicitation brought 40 qualified vendors into the program and resulted in more than $650,000 in sales for these products through February 2011. All of the participating vendors are listed on the windows volume purchase website (www.windowsvolumepurchase.org). Interested buyers have been able to use the website to obtain links to the vendors’ own websites and also view a range of prices, from lowest to highest, for a given product.

"Those who use the site will be able to make direct comparisonsof prices between vendors andwill be able to use this factor in making their final decisions. "

A Website Makeover
In response to numerous buyer comments, DOE is making several phase two website updates that are designed to make the site more efficient and convey necessary information to the buyer more effectively.

One of the most significant changes comes in the way vendor prices are displayed; the website now will reveal individual prices by company, rather than a range of prices for all companies in a given product group. Those who use the site will be able to make direct comparisons of prices between vendors and will be able to use this factor in making their final decisions.

The website’s format also is being modified. A filtering/sorting tool will be added, and this will allow users to enter criteria about the windows they’re trying to find and obtain an immediate list of vendors who meet those criteria. A sorting feature will be a part of this tool, and a descriptor box will appear whenever a vendor’s name is chosen. The descriptor box will include a picture of the products, brief bullet-point information about the vendor and products, a list of brand names of qualified windows and a link to the vendor’s website. DOE will require vendors to maintain links to their respective websites that will allow buyers to quickly find information about the qualified products and streamline the process for ordering those products. This requirement is designed to keep traffic flowing toward the desired information and enhance the overall purchaser experience.

"Among the additions being made to the program
are the inclusion of commercial products. While these products were never explicitly excluded, the specifications in Phase I were designed specifically with residential windows in mind, and resulting U-factor requirements precluded most commercial windows from qualifying."

Reaching Out
Public outreach will be key to communicating the program’s benefits. Based upon initial, positive construction industry economic indicators, DOE believes the time has never been better to ramp up our efforts to reach anyone and everyone who can benefit from the program.

Program team members will continue to attend trade shows, conferences, exhibitions and conduct regional workshops. We will work with important buyer groups such as builders, contractors, housing authorities and architects to spread news of the program to all corners of the building industry. The team also is working in collaboration with utilities and market transformation organizations such as Long Island Power Authority, American Electric Power, the Consortium for Energy Efficiency, the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance and the Energy Trust of Oregon in an effort to help create utility incentive programs that specifically target high-performance windows and low-E storm windows.

March 18 was the first and priority processing deadline for vendors to enter the program’s next phase. The team officially launched phase two at the National Association of Home Builders’ National Green Building Conference and Exposition in Salt Lake City, May 3. Vendors who are unable to meet the priority deadline still will be allowed to apply to enter the program until September 18, and all proposals received will be processed in the order they are received.

Terry Mapes is an energy efficiency engineer at PNNL and the principal investigator for the program. DOE’s High-Performance Windows Volume Purchase Program is supported by DOE’s Building Technologies Program and managed by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

DWM
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