Sustainability
Sustainable construction has been a hallmark of the structural building components
industry since 1952. Alpine is committed to helping truss manufacturers, builders,
remodelers and homeowners practice and promote sustainability by conserving today's
resources for tomorrow's children. We make a concerted effort to offer products that
balance design and performance with environmental responsibility. In fact, the wood
you purchase comes from one of the earth's most renewable resources – trees. Wood is
also the most energy-efficient of all the major building products.
Building components minimize the amount of material use and jobsite waste created,
which is an important point to reinforce with builders and general contractors. And
there's data to prove it. The 1996 WTCA Framing the American Dream project
confirmed a more than 25 percent material savings (and labor savings of more than 60
percent) when components were used to frame a 2,600-sq.-ft. home. Visit
www.sbcindustry.com for more details about this project.
In addition, building components are designed to utilize materials most efficiently. Don't
forget that material efficiency is inherent to the process of component design. Design
software from Alpine enables the designer or technician to value engineer and optimize
virtually any component design. As a result, material is not used when it isn't needed.
Many sustainability rating systems recognize this benefit of components and award
points based on their use. The National Resource Defense Council realized this back in
1998 when it placed trusses high on its list of great products due to their optimum value
engineering. View the detailed report at www.nrdc.org.
The use of building components also tightens a building's envelope. Greater precision is
built into components with today's technology and the fact that they're constructed
under controlled conditions. When a good foundation is in place, component
construction provides for additional precision that fosters a tighter building envelope.
This means that consumers conserve energy while enjoying less draft and heat loss.
Additional information about sustainable building practices and component fabrication is
available by visiting:
www.epa.gov/greenbuilding/pubs/whybuild.htm
www.nrdc.org/cities/building/rwoodus.asp
www.sbcindustry.com
