经过一整天的家庭之旅，NAHBNational Green Building Conferencegot rolling in earnest on Monday, May 17, in Raleigh, N.C. While slightly smaller than a few years ago, the conference had a respectable turnout and some good educational sessions for attendees. Kept to a concise day and a half with five sessions running concurrently, it was easy to miss some good talks—unless, of course, not only could you split your personality, but also your body. The GBA team was, not unexpectedly, very well represented at the conference—on the tour, for the awards, and as educational session leaders.

水是会议的主要主题之一。一项会议涵盖了水资源系统，包括中央和局部废水处理系统。一个关键点是，尽管美国的普通家庭每天使用400加仑的水，但人们只会消耗3加仑。我们为什么要使用饮用水冲洗厕所，水草坪和填充喷泉？北卡罗来纳州立大学的迈克·胡佛（Mike Hoover）指出，尽管将废水处理为饮用水平的标准是非常昂贵的，但并非将其处理为不可使用的标准，并指出，我们使用大量能量将水对待水的水平不需要它的使用。

另一个水会由Ryan Taylor，来自亚特兰大的建筑师朋友，他通过审议和细节分享了有关水效率的出色数据和建议，这些数据和细节在我的演讲中避免了我。我喜欢认为我们的风格互相互补。

Green? Tense? Say what?

今年的新概念是关于各种主题的一整天的新概念，包括能源效率，室内空气质量，资源效率和水效率。我不知道谁想出了古怪的名字，但是会议是有影响力的，活泼的讨论。我领导了水效率会议，这是一个关于该主题的良好对话。我参加的两种蔬菜（我仍然在这个词上遇到麻烦） - 彼得·约斯特（Peter Yost）提高了能源效率，而迈克尔·斯特朗（Michael Strong）的资源效率提高了一项，这是充满活力和信息丰富的。

Peter made some excellent points that struck home, including:

• 所有建筑商都是豚鼠，他们应该要求制造商不仅为产品提供产品，而且还提供完整的系统，例如带有最佳家用包装的窗户和护套。
• We put insulation in wall cavities not because it is the best place to put it, but because it is the cheapest place.
• 从拥有最知识渊博的现场代表的供应商那里购买，他们将出来您的工作网站。

And now to the exhibit hall

我was impressed by a few vendors on the show floor, where I saw some products I had never seen before. My unofficial award for elegant simplicity goes to the unfortunately namedTenmatrecessed light cover. A fireproof preformed cover for recessed lights that protects them from insulation and helps provide an air seal, this product should fly off the shelves into the hands of weatherization contractors. Too bad they weren’t exhibiting atAffordable Comfort或者Resnet, where they would have been more appreciated.

Another product that caught my eye was recycled granite fromEarth Stone Products。在开发了一种Huck Finn类型的业务模型之后，它们被付费用于从制造商那里拖运废石柜台材料，将其切成各种形状，用于瓷砖和铺路装置，然后将其出售给承包商。他们不仅不为自己的材料付费，而且实际上有人付钱给他们带走石头。我喜欢产品和业务模型。希望他们能取得巨大的成功。

最后，虽然不是新产品，但Safe ‘N Soundgreen doors are new to me. These interior doors look like typical molded panel doors, but they are made with low-formaldehyde and low-VOC finishes and adhesives and are available with wheat straw cores and FSC-certified wood.

Overall, this year’s conference was, in my opinion, a modest success. The NAHB markets primarily to members—and with membership down and the industry still in a slump, they are challenged to increase attendance, which this conference deserves. Continuing to experiment with sessions such as GreenTensives and adding additional advanced trainings will help carry them forward.