Let’s get the ball rolling!

This 2005 Bennazato Self-Erecting Tower Crane was used on one of the world’s largest SIP jobs, the Cherokee School in Cherokee NC.  Our sister company Panelwrights used this piece of equipment to set over 400k sq ft of structural insulated panels at a rate not typically seen on most SIP projects.

As we developed our 2012 Class Schedule, we wanted to address the issues of time and cost as it pertains to your training dollars.  We’ve taken our two most popular classes and condensed them, giving you  the same information in longer training days.  Even better, we’ve reduced our pricing for these two classes.

Our SIPs 201 Owner/Builder has been reworked from a day and a half session to one long day.  Be prepared to start at 8:00am, and finish somewhere between 4:00-6:00pm, depending on questions from the students.

Our SIPs 202 Installation Workshop is now two days, down from the original three, but with the same amount of classroom and handson time as in the original version.  Be prepared to stay until the class project is complete on Day 2 – as usual, SIPschool will provide lunch, snacks and beverages to get you through the day with Al and Dan.

If you are interested in Deep Energy Retrofits using nailbase panels, check our our free training.  Register for one of the scheduled sessions, or call us to schedule training for your company – minimum of 5 students.

Check our our class schedule at www.sipschool.org for classes into April 2012.  We’re also in the process of putting together another Southern Tour and are looking at February and March.  If you are interested in hosting a training give us a call at 304-876-8494 or email us at info@sipschool.org

From the conference website:

 According to builders in the Eastern Panhandle, it’s not enough nowadays to build a beautiful home using quality materials.  Their customers are informed, and are beginning to demand energy efficiency, durability, and low maintenance as well as beauty. Our builders say that customers are looking for contractors who understand how the house works as a whole system, and how to save them the best house for the buck. According to research, 25% of new homes nationally are built for Energy Star™ certification. In Ohio, it’s 50%. In WV, we have 3%.  Energy Star-rated homes will continue to grow in demand. They sell faster, and for more. And the word is out on the street…they DON’T cost more to build. It’s all in what the builder/designer know.

Learn more and register (3 days left!) at www.buildthebesthome.org

	Conference Tracks, Speakers, and Events

So here you go!

This training is more than just a SIP seminar.  Director Al Cobb embraces the philosophy that structures are a system and understanding that system is central to durability, efficiency, and comfort.   Set against the backdrop of a mid-1800’s bank barn, this training will begin with classroom lecture in the covered and heated SIPschool shop.  Hands-on training will involve fabrication and installation of SIPs on  mock ups to illustrate proper techniques utilized in a SIP/Timber Frame structure.  This SIPschool training is being sponsored by ACME Panel in Radford, Virginia.  ACME will reimburse the tuition for this training to anyone who purchases ACME Panels within the year.  This session is open to TFG members and the general public.  Register Now

A Nailbase Panel is the SIP industry’s answer to deep energy retrofits.  By removing one skin from the structural insulated panel you create an insulated panel.  This nailbase panel is much closer to a commodity building component than a traditional SIP, as design, engineering, and code issues are a fraction of its fully clad big brother.

The nailbase approach allows a remodeler to attack the structure from the outside.  The nailbase panel has been successfully used in both wall and roof applications.  When old siding and roofing is removed, the nailbase panel can be easily attached (with SIP screws, no less) to the exposed framing.  This approach leaves existing insulation intact and the foam of the nailbase becomes an added layer of thermal efficiency.  The installation of nailbase employs many techniques used with SIPs as it relates to sealing the envelope for maximum air tightness.

The exterior application also avoids dealing with any existing mechanicals and wiring.  Equally important, the interior finish remains basically untouched as the makeover is largely an exterior operation.  With a big exception – your window package.  When the added thickness of nailbase is applied to a structure’s exterior, it almost always forces a do-over with the windows.  This is not necessarily a bad idea for a deep energy retrofit.  A new window and door package will compliment a new and improved exterior shell.

Keep in mind that nailbase panels and a new window package don’t complete your deep energy retrofit.  A complete review of the mechanicals and appliances is essential.  Your new  skin can change the airtightness of your structure to the point where certain combustible appliances could become dangerous.  All deep energy retrofits should be accompanied by an analysis of the entire house and all systems by a trained individual.  This same individual should also stick around to perform the blower door test at the end of your retrofit to ensure that the new shell is properly air sealed.

SIPschool is hosting a FREE 2.5 hour seminar

Nailbase Panels in a Deep Energy Retrofit

This 2.5 hour course includes:

• Tour of manufacturing facility and review of processes involved in foam manufacturing.
• Observation of laminating process in production of nailbase panels.

Following tour, SIPschool’s Al Cobb will review the various applications of nailbase on existing buildings.  This portion of the class will include:

• Choosing the right thickness and core material
• Modification and attachment of panels to wall and roof assemblies
• Special concerns of windows and doors
• Satisfactory indoor air quality
• Safety concerns with combustion appliances

Online registration is required

Class will begin at 1:00pm Monday October 31, 2011

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania-based Bridlewood Builders is the first member of the Structural Insulated Panel Association (SIPA) to receive the SIPA Certified Builder designation. All SIPA Certified Builders have received training on structural insulated panel (SIP) installation and displayed a proven track record of constructing energy-efficient SIP homes. SIPA launched the Certified Builder Program in the summer of 2011 to help homeowners and general contractors identify trained and reputable SIP installers. SIPA Certified Builders can be located through the SIPA membership directory.

Husband and wife management team Terry and Robin Loughran of Bridlewood Builders adopted SIPs as part of their homebuilding business nearly 15 years ago. They have since attended the SIPschool’s SIPs 301 Certified Installer Workshop and now construct SIP homes in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York, New Jersey, and the Washington DC area. “We are always looking for the best technology that allows us to build higher quality homes for our customers,” said Terry Loughran. “We haven’t found any building materials or techniques out there that are more efficient than SIPs, so using SIPs makes it easy to build really energy-efficient homes.”

Bridlewood Builders received the 2010 Pyramid Award from Home Builders Association of Metropolitan Harrisburg for the Best Green Custom Home of the Year. The 2,400 sq. award-winning home in Carlisle, Pennsylvania uses a complete SIP building envelope to reach energy savings of 70 percent over a home built to today’s building code. With reducing the home’s environmental footprint in mind from the beginning, the Loughrans utilized a passive solar design strategy with carefully calculated window sizing and overhang placement. When mechanical heating or cooling is required, the home relies on a geothermal heating and cooling system, an energy recovery ventilator, and an efficient wood-burning masonry heater. A grid-tied photovoltaic array can provide much of the home’s electricity or sell power back to the utility company.

Bridlewood Builders received a second Pyramid Award for Best Custom Home of the Year in the $500,000 – $1 million price range for another SIP home. “We’re thrilled about becoming SIPA Certified Builders,” said Robin Loughran. “We’ve worked very hard to specialize in SIPs and educate both our customers and the general public on the value of building with SIPs.” More information on how to become a SIPA Certified Builder can be found on the Certified Builder page. You can also search for SIPA Certified Builders using the SIPA membership directory.

SIPschool’s next SIPs 301 Certified Installer class is scheduled for October 24-27, 2011 in Shenandoah Junction, WV.

• Installation tools common to the SIP industry
• Specifications and use of equipment for lifting SIPs
• Overall management of a SIP job site
• Various fasteners and their use when installing panels
• Setting the first panel and staying plumb, level and square
• Description of various sealing products
• When, where and how to seal, seal, seal for great energy performance
• SIP Tape: Why its important and when and where to use it
• Tricks to assembling and rigging panels for safe and efficient installation
• Step by step explanation of setting roof panels
• Learning through the mistakes of others
• and much more

This is just a first taste of what you need to know when tackling a SIP installation project.  For hands-on training, check out our onsite classes here at SIPschool.

To support our claim, we’ve used the blower door test to confirm correct envelope construction and detailing.  A blower door test is mandatory when attempting to show compliance with an air-tightness metric like Passive House Certification (0.6 ach@50) or the recently launched SIPA Builder Certification Program (2.0 ach@50).

This test is commonplace  for those seeking higher performance in their buildings, but I feel it should be standard practice for all new construction. I know a tight envelope isn’t as sexy as a lot of the green add-ons consumers can buy today, but if you start with an energy-efficient structure you won’t spend as much on eco-bling.

In this SIPschool video, we’ve attempted to give a brief demonstration on what happens during the blower door test.  Our initial test came back at 1.7 ach@50, and after a lot of foam, tape and mastic, we’re pleased to report that Randy’s follow-up test came back at 0.54 ach@50 -  we’re betting that proves CraftWorks is the most energy efficient structure in West Virgina (insert WV joke here).