Green buildings

NISKAYUNA, N.Y.--When you're listening to someone explain a new scientific method and just about the only thing that goes through your head is "This is going to win a Nobel Prize," you know you're in good company.

That was my experience recently while I was listening to Fiona Ginty, a project leader in computational biology in General Electric Global Research's biosciences group, explain her work. Ginty's project is all about finding new and better ways to spot cancer in a patient's body, ideally as early as possible. And as a member … Read more

Soladigm, a start-up that makes windows that can adjust to block light and heat, plans to build a factory in Mississippi.

The company, which is bankrolled by Khosla Ventures and Sigma Partners, will make electrochromatic windows at the plant which will employ about 100 people in Olive Branch, Miss. in two years.

The three-year-old company has developed a material that is coated onto glass to block out light and heat, an effective way of insulating and reducing a building's energy load.

"The product is dynamic glass--it's like sunglasses that transition based on light," CEO and semiconductor … Read more

If all the commercial buildings in the U.S. that exist as of 2010 were retrofitted to be more energy efficient, the country as a whole would save over $41.1 billion a year in energy bills.

That's according to the report "Energy Efficiency Retrofits for Commercial and Public Buildings" released Thursday by Pike Research.

Of course, in order to get to that $41.1 billion per year in savings, the owners of commercial properties would have to invest in the initial retrofit adaptations and construction upgrades. So how much is that going cost? Well, as it … Read more

San Diego-based Envision Solar, a manufacturer best known for its solar carports, announced two new products Wednesday that expand on the company's idea to utilize solar energy in unusual places.

The LifeVillage is a series of prefab structures framed with light-gauge steel that employ solar panel roofs and can be deployed quickly to disaster areas to provide temporary shelter and electricity, as well as purified water.

Think of LifeVillage as a low-budget version of a Huf Haus. Only instead of being built by German engineers in a pristine factory, the LifeVillage structures can be built on site by unskilled … Read more

A thermostat technology that's intended to significantly reduce energy bills is about to become available for use in actual homes.

EcoFactor, the developer of a software platform for a two-way "smart" thermostat, announced Thursday its dynamic system for regulating home heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems will be offered through a pilot project in the Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, metro area.

In addition to turning heat or air conditioning on and off at set times or specified temperatures, the system monitors the thermal behavior of the home, as well as daily outdoor temperatures and weather forecasts. It … Read more

The Federal Housing Finance Agency announced Tuesday that the Property Assessed Clean Energy, or PACE program, backed by the Department of Energy and the Obama administration, is unacceptable for mortgage lenders to allow in its current form.

It's a move that will affect the program and those like them significantly as the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) regulates Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the 12 Federal Home Loan Banks.

The PACE program offers loans to owners of residential or commercial properties for the purpose of retrofitting their properties with green tech options like solar panels. The loan, which is … Read more

The Louvre Museum is planning an overhaul to replace its current lighting with more energy-efficient and cost-effective LED lighting.

To that end, the Louvre Pyramid, designed by architect I.M. Pei, will be refitted.

Toshiba has signed a partnership agreement to provide the lighting, which in the first phase will encompass the glass pyramids and outdoor lighting for Napoleon Court as well as the Cour Carree, the Louvre's underground, sky-lighted entrance, square, and visitors' center, Toshiba announced Wednesday.

The Napoleon Court lighting is expected to be completed in 2011, with the remaining entrance and underground lobby lighting for the … Read more

Morris County, N.J., plans to install 3.2 megawatts of solar panels on county property roofs with the help of some creative financing, the Morris County Improvement Authority (MCIA) announced Wednesday.

Self-dubbing it the "Morris Model," county officials said in a statement that the project was funded with a unique two-prong approach. Part of it will be paid for with $30 million in county-guaranteed bonds. The rest will be financed in conjunction with the energy utility Tioga Energy, which qualifies for federal solar tax incentives through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA).

The incentives … Read more

General Electric announced Thursday plans to invest $10 billion over the next five years in Ecomagination, the green-focused research and development program it began in 2005.

Since Ecomagination began, GE has invested a total of $5 billion in its research and development as of the end of 2009. The technology and products to come out of that program have generated $70 billion in revenue over the past five years, according to GE statistics released Thursday.

In view of that revenue success, GE has decided to double investment for the program between now and 2015. The announcement is not entirely surprising, … Read more