PSE Single-Family New Construction E-newsletter Spring 2011

SPRING 2011 PSE.COM

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In This Issue

Program updates and new measures

ESH builders: special promo offer

PSE's incentive site verification process

Meet our team

The Puget Sound Energy Single-Family New Construction E-Newsletter is your source for the latest in energy-efficiency and builder information.

In this issue, you'll learn about program updates and new offerings to builders. The changes to our incentives this year are primarily due to the implementation of the 2009 Washington State Energy Code. We'll also give you the scoop on a time-sensitive "special promotion" to builders who are committing to the 2011 Northwest ENERGY STAR Homes program. Read on to understand more about PSE's incentive verification process and lastly, but not least important, you'll get a closer look at our Single-Family New Construction Team.

Program updates and new measures

WSEC's higher efficiency levels impact Single-Family New Construction Program offerings

Stepping into the New Year has been an interesting adventure for many in the building industry, with new building codes and changes in specifications. PSE has been busy analyzing the 2009 Washington State Energy Code to determine the impacts they have to our program offerings. The new state code went into effect on January 1, 2011. Because of the higher levels of energy efficiencies required in the new code, PSE has had to re-evaluate program offerings to ensure our product offerings remain higher than code and are cost effective in the market. Now that these assessments are completed, we've determined the follow-up adjustments are necessary to the Single-Family New Construction Program.

IMPORTANT: As of April 1, 2011 the following changes apply:

All builder incentive submissions to PSE must provide documentation that clearly reflects the building permit approval date for each home.

Single-family incentives are not available for any product used to meet the 2009 Washington State Energy Code.

2010-2011 Builder Incentives

Gas Incentives

Electric Incentives

$250 ENERGY STAR^® qualified natural gas furnace (.95+ percent AFUE)

$350 ENERGY STAR qualified natural gas furnace (.90 - .94 percent AFUE)

$300 Ducts in the conditioned space with performance testing

$350 Duct sealing with performance testing

$150 ENERGY STAR qualified natural gas tankless water heater

$40 ENERGY STAR qualified natural gas water heater (.62 - .66 energy factor)

$100 ENERGY STAR qualified natural gas water heater (.67+ energy factor)

$50 ENERGY STAR Home, Natural Gas Bonus

$200 ENERGY STAR qualified air-source electric heat pump (8.5 HSPF 14 SEER)

$350 ENERGY STAR qualified air-source electric heat pump (9.0 HSPF 14 SEER)

$50 ENERGY STAR qualified clothes washer (MEF 2.2 - 2.45)

$100 ENERGY STAR qualified clothes washer (MEF 2.46+)

$35 ENERGY STAR qualified refrigerator

$40 ENERGY STAR whole house fan

Up to $20 (per fixture) ENERGY STAR qualified compact fluorescent light (CFL) fixtures

$50 ENERGY STAR Home, Electric Bonus

Contact a PSE Program Representative to receive the updated documentation requirements. 2011's program offering and specifications can also be downloaded from PSE.com/BuilderIncentives.

NOTE: These incentives apply to single-family, detached housing and any attached housing with two units or less.

There are likely to be many questions you or member of your team may have about these changes. As always, our team is committed to help you in any way we can. If you are building single family homes under both the current and new energy codes in 2011, give us a call, we can walk you through the process and determine the incentives you may qualify to receive.

If you have any questions or would like to set up a meeting, please contact your PSE Program Representative.

Kevin Peterson

Direct: 425-456-2414

Cell: 425-647-3037

Email: builderrebates@pse.com

Builder highlights

PSE offers "FREE" visibility to 2011 Northwest ENERGY STAR^®Home Builders

The ENERGY STAR Homes Program brand promise to consumers is defined as an above-code program and is significantly more energy efficient. With the implementation of the new 2009 Washington State Energy Code, some builders who previously made it a strategic decision to participate in the ENERGY STAR Homes program are thinking about whether they'll be able to meet the new criteria outlined in the 2011 ENERGY STAR Homes specifications.

Amid spec changes, there are a few builders who are taking advantage of this competitive edge and will continue their commitment to building 100 percent ENERGY STAR Homes. For those of you who are building to the 2011 ENERGY STAR Home specifications, Puget Sound Energy applauds your commitment and continued excellence! To show our appreciation and understanding of the greater cost involved to meet these new standards, PSE would like to help by offering you "free visibility" via PSE's June bill insert - that's a potential market reach to more than 1 million electric customers and 750,000 natural gas customers located in 11 counties!

FREE VISIBILITY THROUGH PSE'S JUNE BILL INSERT

The focus for our June insert is to educate potential homebuyers on the benefits of purchasing an ENERGY STAR qualified home. The insert also offers, upon request, a list of ENERGY STAR builders in our service area who are building to the new 2011 specifications. The list will highlight your company name, telephone number and website address.

To take advantage of this promotional offer contact a PSE Representative at 425-456-2414 by May 1, 2011 and confirm your commitment to building to the new 2011 ENERGY STAR Home specifications. PSE will verify your participation level with the Northwest ENERGY STAR Homes program.

PSE's incentive site verification process

The PSE Process of Meeting 15 Percent

Meeting company-wide compliance standards for incentive verification is a priority in our division. Our program is required to perform site verifications on a minimum of 15 percent of new homes that have applied for incentives. Site verification confirms the installation of energy-efficient products in these homes. There has always been a verification stipulation; however, in the past year the Single-Family New Construction program has standardized the process, making it more streamlined and easy for our partners to participate.

Kevin Peterson has been diligently performing these verifications. If you are receiving any incentives from PSE, keep an eye out for Kevin on your job sites. You will be able to recognize him driving his white "smart" car and wearing his trusty white PSE hard hat. Feel free to ask him questions about our programs or just stop and say hi.

Each builder's engagement in the verification process varies a bit, however the steps below are pretty standard across the board:

Scheduling: On a weekly basis, our large production builder partners provide PSE with a "building production schedule", which we use to confirm the construction stage and ensure the home is ready for equipment verification (HVAC, lighting and appliances). Working with smaller builders, PSE references the Builder Incentive Form that is submitted by the builder; and then calls the builder to see if the developments are ready to verify. Prior to arriving on the job site, we will contact the site supervisor, giving them a heads up of PSE's presence on-site and will coordinate any special access instructions necessary.

Equipment and Site Safety: Safety is a key objective for PSE. A hard hat and proper footwear are required on all job sites visited. PSE's hard hat is easily identifiable by our logo located on the front and is worn at all times. A hard hat and proper footwear are the only consistent requirements requested by all builders. A few larger builders have required us to take a site safety training class. In those cases, a special sticker is provided and placed on our hard hat to acknowledge that we have taken the class.

Verification and Documentation: As Kevin walks through the home, checklist in hand, the amount of time necessary for verification varies for each project, but on average he's able to document the information needed in approximately five to ten minutes per home.

Thanks to the cooperation of our participating building partners and our program team of experts, we have created a fairly easy process that works well. If you are new to our program and would like more information about our verification requirements, please call a PSE Program Representative at 425-456-2414 or email us at builderrebates@pse.com.

Meet our team

A (Seriously) Fun Introduction to PSE's New Construction Team

From left to right: Kim Williams, John Forde, Kevin Peterson (back), Sean Abadilla and Megan Doyle.

You've seen them in action at the job site, speaking and exhibiting at various green building conferences and partnering with many sustainably-focused industry associations. Our staff members are serious about their work and share common objectives - finding ways to 'save energy' and helping our partners 'save money' by the installation of energy-efficient products. Looking more closely, you'll see there are many faces and facets of expertise within this group, as well as a wide variety of personalities that make each day fresh and interesting. As committed professionals, they of course take their jobs seriously, but also know how to keep it real and have fun. Beyond their job titles, here's a closer look at PSE's Single-Family New Construction Team.

John Forde, Market Manager: John is the Market Manager for several of PSE's programs - Single-Family and Multifamily New Construction, Multifamily Retrofit and Low Income Weatherization. He is our go-to person for upper level program planning and management decisions, and is involved in regional relations with local utilities, NEEA, Northwest ENERGY STAR Homes and numerous MBA Built Green programs. John has an extensive background in weatherization, energy audits, and inspections. Prior to joining PSE in late 2005, he implemented the BUILT SMART Program during his tenure with Seattle City Light.

Co-workers describe John as: Wise, diligent and detailed.

In John's words: I am a juggler.

For Fun: John enjoys skiing. He skis both lift served and backcountry. He has skied several mountains including Rainier, Baker and White Pass. "The Pacific Northwest is blessed with snow almost year round. This allowed me to ski 32 months in a row!"

Megan Doyle, Program Manager: With over ten years of experience working in PSE's Energy Efficiency Services division, Megan provides a wealth of electric and natural gas product knowledge as well as extensive lighting expertise to our team. She manages the business development outreach efforts and examines cross market opportunities. Megan also oversees the program budget, incentive measure evaluation, incentive processing and is the face to many of external partners.

Co-workers describe Megan as: Thoughtful, detailed, dedicated and encouraging.

In Megan's words: I am determined.

For Fun: Megan loves living life. She lives minutes from Richmond Beach and enjoys walking the beach looking for unique shells and beach glass. She's into the thrill of skiing and dirt biking. On the weekends you can often find her looking for garage and estate sales to find old treasures. She has two beautiful girls that she adores.

Kevin Peterson, Program Coordinator: Kevin has been an integral part of the Single-Family New Construction team since 2006. He has been the face of PSE to the builder community for most of his tenure. Kevin is responsible for all builder and partner outreach, incentive verification and working in tandem with Megan to make sure the needs of our partners are met and that our savings targets are achieved.

Co-workers describe Kevin as: Energetic, seeker, self-assured and exuberant.

In Kevin's words: I am enthusiastic.

For Fun: Kevin enjoys spending all his free time with his wife, family and friends. He also loves to travel; particularly to warm climates. You will never find him indoors (if he can help it) in the summer. He is a Leo and likes long walks on the beach.

Sean Abadilla, Rebate Analyst: We have been lucky enough to have Sean as part of our team since 2008. Sean brings a strong technical background in database applications and is responsible for paying all of our builder incentives. Sean has also been assisting in the creation of program forms that help streamline our incentive process.

Co-workers describe Sean as: Level-headed, detailed, enthusiastic and steadfast.

In Sean words: I am efficient.

For Fun: Sean is jazzed by watching live concerts; his favorite genre include hip-hop, rock and of course, jazz. You can often find him relaxing after hours playing NES video games or lying on his couch watching a good movie. If he's not found there, he's enjoying quality time with his girlfriend and riding his bike.

Kim Williams, Marketing Manager: To complement our business development outreach, Kim manages the strategic development and execution of an integrated marketing plan that includes the gamut of communication tools and various co-operatives. Joining PSE in 2007, she brings over twenty years of business-to-business marketing experience working in the A/E/C industry. Kim currently splits her time working between our Single-Family New Construction and the Multifamily Retrofit programs.

Co-workers describe Kim as: Professional, steadfast, committed and thorough.

In Kim's words: I am a creative soul.

For Fun: Bitten by the photo bug, Kim is often found behind a camera lens and playing around with lighting equipment trying to capture special moments with friends and her beloved family. She gravitates towards anything that offers an artist release, from jewelry design to graphic and photo manipulation. She's active in many sports yet receives the biggest buzz from daily asanas.

We hope that this issue has provided you with some ideas and resources to improve energy efficiency in the homes you build. Let us know if you have any story ideas you'd like to see in future issues.

For more information on PSE builder incentives and programs, visit PSE.com/BuilderIncentives or feel free to contact our team.

Thanks for using energy wisely,

Your Single-Family New Construction Team

About PSE

Washington state's oldest local energy utility, Puget Sound Energy serves more than 1 million electric customers and 750,000 natural gas customers in 11 counties. A subsidiary of Puget Energy, PSE meets the energy needs of its growing customer base through incremental, cost-effective energy conservation, procurement of sustainable energy resources, and far-sighted investment in the energy-delivery infrastructure. PSE employees are dedicated to providing great customer service and delivering energy that is safe, reliable, reasonably priced, and environmentally responsible.