One of the problems I've been facing has been finding a local, central-PA verifier. To date, there were none listed on the NAHB website. I just received an email from the folks at Comfort Home indicating that they were going to be (or already are) qualified verifiers for the program. The pricing was about what was expected at this point.
Final plans are now being worked on - so we hope to have something to move forward with in short order. Stay tuned!
Monday, April 28, 2008
Friday, April 11, 2008
SIPs Tour Complete
Yesterday, a team from Haubert Homes (including our on-site Supervisor, our Drafting Manager, myself and my brother and nephew) AND our client visited the Murus SIPs manufacturing facility in Mansfield, PA. What an operation! It was interesting to see how this company creates the different types of panels - and we were able to see them taking a panel out of the machine and pulled off the line. Going in, our client was considering using the thicker EPS panel rather than the 4" PUR panel. By the end of the tour, the client decided that the 6" PUR panel with the cam-locks was the way to go. I'd say the rest of us agree, too.
We looked at the plans that Murus produces for a job - and discussed how we would integrate the two plans as we prepare to move forward. A quick lunch - and we did a preliminary plan review while we ate. Very few changes - and I chalk that up to the fact that our client is meticulous in his details - and provided a good and detailed sketch from the beginning. We believe we'll be lengthening the house to an earlier measurement. Unfortunately, this will take us out of the "modular" dimensioning one way for the house - meaning there'll be a little waste - but we're willing to lose the points to get a dimension that's requested by the client.
One thing I need to review is the points assessment for SIPs vs. advanced framing techniques with increased insulation. My first (and admittedly) cursory review of the points makes it appear that there'd be less points awarded for using SIPs than would be awarded with the advanced framing techniques. That seems a bit unfair given the benefits of the SIPs system - with thermal envelope and panelized construction for the walls. That being said, when I look in more detail, I may find that it nets out better for us. I'll fill in the details as I explore some more!
I'm meeting my framing trade contractor this morning to review the SIPs building procedure - and the way we decided to go (bringing the panels down to the sill plate on the outside and running the floor joists inside the thermal envelope. The second floor joists will be installed using hangers - again keeping the entire floor system within the thermal envelope. Our framing contractor has not used SIPs in the past - so we want to start familiarizing him with the process. I also am hoping to see a price for doing this. I would guess that there should be some savings - since there is less assembly of a wall. However, since this is a new procedure, I'm sure there will be a learning curve that may offset the savings. We'll see. The folks at Murus indicated they would send a consultant to the site to assist with assembly questions, etc. A cost is involved, of course, but it'll be worth it!
OH! I'm also "official" now!! Late Wednesday afternoon, I received an email from NAHB indicating that I have earned the Certified Green Professional (CGP) designation and graduated with the inaugural class! I guess that means I'm one of the first in the nation with this designation from NAHB. I checked the website - and, currently, I'm the only one in the greater metropolitan Harrisburg area with that designation. I know others are actively seeking - so I won't be alone for long - but it's nice to know Haubert Homes is at the forefront of this worthy building practice.
We looked at the plans that Murus produces for a job - and discussed how we would integrate the two plans as we prepare to move forward. A quick lunch - and we did a preliminary plan review while we ate. Very few changes - and I chalk that up to the fact that our client is meticulous in his details - and provided a good and detailed sketch from the beginning. We believe we'll be lengthening the house to an earlier measurement. Unfortunately, this will take us out of the "modular" dimensioning one way for the house - meaning there'll be a little waste - but we're willing to lose the points to get a dimension that's requested by the client.
One thing I need to review is the points assessment for SIPs vs. advanced framing techniques with increased insulation. My first (and admittedly) cursory review of the points makes it appear that there'd be less points awarded for using SIPs than would be awarded with the advanced framing techniques. That seems a bit unfair given the benefits of the SIPs system - with thermal envelope and panelized construction for the walls. That being said, when I look in more detail, I may find that it nets out better for us. I'll fill in the details as I explore some more!
I'm meeting my framing trade contractor this morning to review the SIPs building procedure - and the way we decided to go (bringing the panels down to the sill plate on the outside and running the floor joists inside the thermal envelope. The second floor joists will be installed using hangers - again keeping the entire floor system within the thermal envelope. Our framing contractor has not used SIPs in the past - so we want to start familiarizing him with the process. I also am hoping to see a price for doing this. I would guess that there should be some savings - since there is less assembly of a wall. However, since this is a new procedure, I'm sure there will be a learning curve that may offset the savings. We'll see. The folks at Murus indicated they would send a consultant to the site to assist with assembly questions, etc. A cost is involved, of course, but it'll be worth it!
OH! I'm also "official" now!! Late Wednesday afternoon, I received an email from NAHB indicating that I have earned the Certified Green Professional (CGP) designation and graduated with the inaugural class! I guess that means I'm one of the first in the nation with this designation from NAHB. I checked the website - and, currently, I'm the only one in the greater metropolitan Harrisburg area with that designation. I know others are actively seeking - so I won't be alone for long - but it's nice to know Haubert Homes is at the forefront of this worthy building practice.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
SIPS vs Standard Wall Framing/Insulation
Preliminary estimates of our standard wall framing and insulation vs. SIPs on this particular project are in. Looks like the SIPs will cost (material only) almost 75% more than our standard wall framing and standard insulation. We've ruled out doing SIPs on the roof at this point - opting for the standard trusses and blown insulation. Our site tour is this Thursday - so I hope to have some interesting information to post at the end of this week or early next week!!
Also, we had a meeting with our standard carpet manufacturer today - Mohawk Industries. It turns out that they have many products in our current pricing tiers that fit in nicely with the NAHB Green Building Guidelines. They have a new marketing program entitled "1 - 2 - 3 - Floor" to discuss the green aspects of their PET products. I've included a link to the right for their current website!
Also, we had a meeting with our standard carpet manufacturer today - Mohawk Industries. It turns out that they have many products in our current pricing tiers that fit in nicely with the NAHB Green Building Guidelines. They have a new marketing program entitled "1 - 2 - 3 - Floor" to discuss the green aspects of their PET products. I've included a link to the right for their current website!
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Preliminary Plans Complete
We just received our preliminary plans for the project. I'm working on a way to get those online for anyone interested to review. Immediately, I emailed these plans to Murus - who is working on a quote for the walls and (separately) roof panels. We set up a tour of the Murus SIP facility for April 10th - and a number of folks from our organization (and probably the clients) are planning on attending.
I'm also having our Estimating Department do take-offs of our standard flooring system, wall lumber and trusses - for comparison with the SIPs numbers. We will also be looking at any savings that come from exploring the Advanced Framing Techniques. Then, I'll seek out pricing for some of the blown-in sidewall insulation currently available.
We did receive our first quote back from an engineer to meet some of the guidelines in Section 1. The number was higher than we had expected (and, admittedly, higher than the engineer expected - but he tried to work it out on a time-and-material basis and ultimately came to the number he did). The client has an engineer friend who will be considered on this project. A quick discussion ensued to determine how much of those early guidelines needed to be done by an engineer vs. doing the legwork ourselves. More needs to be researched on this.
I'm also having our Estimating Department do take-offs of our standard flooring system, wall lumber and trusses - for comparison with the SIPs numbers. We will also be looking at any savings that come from exploring the Advanced Framing Techniques. Then, I'll seek out pricing for some of the blown-in sidewall insulation currently available.
We did receive our first quote back from an engineer to meet some of the guidelines in Section 1. The number was higher than we had expected (and, admittedly, higher than the engineer expected - but he tried to work it out on a time-and-material basis and ultimately came to the number he did). The client has an engineer friend who will be considered on this project. A quick discussion ensued to determine how much of those early guidelines needed to be done by an engineer vs. doing the legwork ourselves. More needs to be researched on this.
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