Advocacy
Industry Rallies to Inform on Practical Energy Standards for Manufactured Homes
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Energy efficiency is a strong point for manufactured homes, particularly homes built during the last dozen years. Nearly every builder of HUD Code homes has improved its standard energy efficiency and rolled out myriad options for products that help with sustainability in energy transfer and cost reduction. Manufactured home builders pack every bit of R-value they can into a home, knowing it will be a prime tool in marketing the homes because it will help reduce monthly costs for the buyer. Manufactured home builders hit the mark on efficient housing, including when it comes to energy, from the way materials are shipped and stored to a manufactured facility, to efficiencies on the line, and the quality of products used within well-designed floorplans.
Department of Energy Conservation Standards for Manufactured Housing Manufactured housing industry leaders have found a unified voice in helping policymakers in Washington, D.C., to understand that the energy efficiency standard being discussed would be counterproductive for factory-built homes, and would impede the availability of affordable homes going to market. The Manufactured Housing Institute, in responding to the energy department and garnering support to op-
pose the changes, is quick to point out that the industry appreciates energy efficiency. The problem lies in how the department proposes to implement those efficiencies. “The current DOE proposal is fundamentally flawed and must be completely rewritten to ensure manufactured homes remain an available option for American families,” MHI said in a published statement on Oct. 21 “If the proposed rule is finalized as written, it will eliminate manufactured housing as an affordable housing option for hundreds of thousands of potential homebuyers. “The DOE proposal would dramatically increase the costs of manufactured homes, and in some areas of the country, will make the construction and transportation of homes nearly impossible. The proposal uses the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code, which was developed for commercial and site-built residential buildings and ignores all the construction aspects unique to manufactured housing.” MHI and the industry collectively ask the energy department to recognize the HUD Code as a starting point for construction and safety standards of manufactured homes. A comment period held from July through Nov. 26 has allowed for industry input before rule making moves forward. MHV
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