In partnership with the private sector, state and local governments, national laboratories, and universities, the Building Technologies Program works to improve the efficiency of buildings and the equipment, components, and systems within them. The program supports research and development (R&D) activities and provides tools, guidelines, training, and access to technical and financial resources.
Read more about the program's vision and mission, zero energy goals and Multi-Year Program Plan for research and development of building technologies through 2012. The work of the Building Technologies Program is supported by DOE national laboratories, which have extensive R&D expertise and unique facilities and equipment.
For more information, read our program fact sheet (PDF 363 KB). Download Adobe Reader. To learn more about Building Technologies Program partnerships, visit Program Areas.
Opportunities for Energy and Cost Savings
Today's buildings consume more energy than any other sector of the U.S. economy, including transportation and industry. In addition, almost three-quarters of our nation's 81 million buildings were built before 1979. Some were designed and constructed for limited service, and many will eventually require either significant retrofits or replacement. An additional 15 million new buildings are projected to be built by 2010. Together, aging buildings and new construction represent a tremendous opportunity to transform how we design, build, and operate our buildings.
Innovations in energy-efficient building envelopes, equipment, lighting, daylighting, and windows, in conjunction with advances in passive solar, photovoltaic, fuel cells, advanced sensors and controls and combined heating, cooling, and power, have the potential to dramatically transform today's buildings. These technologies—coupled with a whole building design approach that optimizes the interactions among building systems and components—will enable tomorrow's buildings to use considerably less energy, while also helping to meet our national goals for sustainable development, environmental protection, and energy security.
Moving Toward Zero Energy Buildings
DOE's zero energy building research initiative drives the goals of the Building Technologies Program and is bringing a new concept to builders and building owners across the United States. Zero energy buildings produce as much energy as they use over the course of a year. They are designed to be extremely energy efficient and have low energy requirements. To meet the remaining energy needs, zero energy buildings typically use renewable energy technologies such as solar water heating and solar electricity.
Learn more about the efforts DOE is making to achieve zero energy buildings. The Building America program conducts research to find energy-efficient solutions for new and existing residential housing. The High Performance Commercial Buildings initiative works to achieve zero energy commercial buildings through research in the areas of energy-efficiency and renewable energy technologies, recycled and sustainable materials, and site sensitive design.