UI Solar House Wins Market Viability Award

(Photo by Greg Knott, CABER Staff)

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign today won the market viability contest in the U.S. Department of Energy's Solar Decathlon competition on the National Mall today. The team scored 114.35 out of 150 possible points in this contest which evaluates a home's market appeal, cost-effective construction and integration of solar technology into its design.

"The market viability contest demonstrates that the highly efficient houses showcased at the Department of Energy's Solar Decathlon can compete in the global marketplace," Assistant Secretary of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Alexander Karsner said. "Paired with market appeal, this competition reveals that solar-powered homes can be built efficiently at a cost-competitive price to Americans."

In today's contest the University of Maryland team placed second with 112.50 points and Pennsylvania State University placed third with 109.95 points.

Market viability is a new contest in the Solar Decathlon this year and evolved from the first two competitions held in 2002 and 2005. A jury of industry experts considered livability, buildability, and flexibility. Teams built their houses for a target market of their choosing and were asked to demonstrate the potential of their houses to keep costs affordable within that market. The ten Solar Decathlon contests measure many aspects of the homes' performance, including architecture, engineering, lighting, comfort, operating appliances, water heating, etc.

News Blaze, Oct. 19, 2007