This is a sponsored article from Efficiency Vermont.

An exciting opportunity is now available to AIAVT members and other professionals around the state: enrollment in the new Building Design Professionals group, part of Efficiency Vermont’s Efficiency Excellence Network (EEN). The EEN, Efficiency Vermont’s premier trade ally association, is composed of experts in the advanced technologies and building sciences that make buildings more energy efficient and affordable to maintain. EEN members enjoy such benefits as free technical trainings and enhanced project support. In return, members commit to providing their customers a high level of professional energy efficiency services and participation in Efficiency Vermont residential and commercial construction programs.

The EEN offers membership to trade allies working in residential new construction, HVAC, lighting design, refrigeration, Home Performance with ENERGY STAR, and an increasing variety of other trade groups. What all members have in common is a focus on efficiency and high performance in building design, techniques, and products. The new building design professionals group consists of both licensed architects and mechanical and electrical engineers. 

Benefits of Joining the EEN

Architects already focusing on high-performance design such as net-zero and net-zero-ready buildings are a natural fit for the EEN. Architects who wish to learn more about increasing the efficiency of the buildings they design, and to explore the latest products and techniques, will find great educational resources to tap into. In any case, the EEN will provide increased visibility to these members through its website and promotional efforts.

Sustainable Design LLC, a small architecture and consulting firm in Manchester Center, Vermont, has been in business for about 10 years and was one of the first architecture firms to join the network. Co-owner Alan Benoit, AIA, lists three major benefits architects can gain from joining Efficiency Vermont’s EEN: cutting-edge training, expert technical support, and an expanded network of like-minded contractors. All three benefits can enhance business success. 

Benoit has attended EEN presentations in Rutland and Brattleboro, and especially appreciated having remote access to one recent educational offering. “Efficiency Vermont had an excellent training available as a webinar on mini-split heat pumps and related issues,” he says.

In addition to training, “the technical support we get from Efficiency Vermont is exemplary,” says Benoit. “We can ask for help sizing a heating system, discuss how to reduce heat loss—for those of us who don’t have in-house energy modeling software, Efficiency Vermont is a great resource.”

Steve Spatz of Efficiency Vermont expands on this idea. “As the design of building assemblies gets better and better, the loads for heating, cooling, and ventilating these buildings become much lower,” he says. “Careful calculation and modeling needs to be done to correctly size equipment for these needs. Many architects cannot, or do not want to, pay the high license fees for building energy modeling software that they might use only a couple of times a year. We offer access to building energy modeling tools and assistance from Efficiency Vermont consultants in developing building loads and evaluating envelope performance options.”

Another benefit to connecting with Efficiency Vermont, Spatz points out, is simply its status as a neutral party. “When architects get conflicting information from various sources, they can run things by us to get clarity,” he says. “We offer unbiased, evidence-based advice from building science. We are not influenced by someone selling something.”

But the biggest advantage of belonging to the EEN may be the human connection, says Benoit. That is, “finding contractors and subcontractors who specialize in this field. All architects designing high-performance homes need to have such contacts,” he adds. Like many other firms, Sustainable Design typically connects its clients with their contractors. If the design involves, for example, whole-house heat pump heating and cooling equipment, balanced ventilation, and advanced building envelope details, it’s important to the firm to ensure the installation is done right. “We want contractors who are experienced with these systems. We want to eliminate the learning curve,” Benoit says. Through the EEN, Sustainable Design has connected with an expanding group of statewide experts who both share the firm’s interest in affordable energy-efficient building and have the know-how to bring its green designs to life.

Membership Requirements

EEN member architects must be licensed in the state of Vermont by the Vermont Board of Architects, in addition to meeting the standards below, which are applicable to all EEN trade allies.

EEN members must carry $1 million in professional liability insurance, complete at least one project per year with Efficiency Vermont (or in some cases, demonstrate substantial progress toward completion), and earn eight professional credits in energy efficiency education each year. The professional credits are earned via trainings that support the purpose and goals of the EEN and its members, and one professional credit is equivalent to one hour of training. Members submit energy efficiency education credits using an online form. Technical trainings led by the Efficiency Vermont EEN team almost always carry AIA continuing education credit as well as count toward annual EEN continuing education requirements. EEN-led technical trainings are typically offered once a month at locations throughout the state.

These trainings, combined with the expert technical support of Efficiency Vermont and the opportunities created by an expanding network of building professionals, offer robust benefits to the Vermont architecture community.

For More Information or to Join:

Interested in joining the Efficiency Excellence Network? 

Contact Efficiency Vermont at een@efficiencyvermont.com or 855-832-7283.

EEN website:

https://contractors.efficiencyvermont.com/efficiency-excellence-network

Sustainable Design website:

https://www.sdvermont.com/

Opinions expressed in AIAVT News are those of the writers to whom they are attributed and not AIAVT, unless specifically stated. Neither this Chapter, nor the Executive Committee, any Chapter committee, nor any of its officers, directors, committee members or employees, in an official capacity as such, shall approve, sponsor or endorse, either directly or indirectly, any public or private enterprise operated for profit, or any material of construction or any method or manner of handling, using, distributing or dealing in any material or product.