The project will have Dow working with Habitat for Humanity, and Michigan State University and Ferris State University, with select contributions from Duke Energy, DTE Energy and Exelon.
The DOE retrofit project has been designed to reduce both energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, and establish national guidelines and standards for retrofit methods, materials and practices by bringing together communities, government, private sector companies and non-profit organizations.
Under the Dow-led Energy Efficiency Insulation Retrofit Project, the team will conduct a pre- and post-retrofit homeowner market research designed by Michigan State University to understand the consumers’ concerns about retrofit costs, procedures and results.
Dow and Ferris State University’s Granger Center for Construction and HVACR will develop new products and application for wall and roofing insulations and overall building air sealing that is expected to lead to 30% of building energy savings.
The team will also leverage Habitat for Humanity’s knowledge of lower-income homeowner issues and Dow’s marketplace know-how and supply chain strategies to create a business model for the commercialization of retrofit systems.
William Jackson, global research and development director of Dow Building & Construction, said: “Our goal is to simplify and improve upon the current solutions and application practices to achieve enhanced energy efficiency in existing residential homes.”
