The Swiss Team Wins U.S. Department of Energy Sola

Denver, Colorado, Oct. 14, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Acting Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Daniel Simmons today announced the winning team of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Decathlon 2017 in Denver, Colorado. The Swiss Team took first place overall by designing, building, and operating the house that best blended smart energy production with innovation, market potential, and energy and water efficiency. The University of Maryland took second place followed by the University of California, Berkeley and University of Denver team in third place.

“The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon provides real-world training and experience for the energy professionals of tomorrow,” said Acting Assistant Secretary Simmons. “It is also a live demonstration of innovative products available today that can help tackle global energy challenges such as reliability, resilience, and security.”

The teams competed in 10 contests throughout a nine-day stretch that gauged each house’s performance, livability and market potential. They performed everyday tasks including cooking, laundry and washing dishes, which tested the energy efficiency of each house. Full competition results and details about the individual contests may be found at www.SolarDecathlon.gov .

“This prestigious competition engages students from across the country and internationally to develop the skills and knowledge to become the next generation of energy experts, and I want to recognize all of these teams for their hard work and dedication,” said Linda Silverman, Director of the Solar Decathlon. “Today’s results are the culmination of two years of collaboration among students from different academic disciplines — including engineering, architecture, interior design, business, marketing, and communications — who otherwise might not work together until they enter the workplace. Together, we’re ensuring that employers have the qualified workers they need to support American job growth.”

The results of the Market Potential and Engineering Contests were also announced today. Northwestern took first place in market potential by scoring 92 of 100 possible points. For the Market Potential Contest , each competing house was evaluated by a jury of professionals from the homebuilding industry that evaluated the overall attractiveness of the design to the target client and the market impact potential of the house. Some of the criteria included appeal and marketability for the target client, the livability in meeting the target client’s unique needs, the house’s cost effectiveness, and how easily the competition prototype could be constructed successfully by a general contractor.

Bob Dixon, Director of the Office of Strategic Programs in the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at DOE, presenting the award, said, “The jury said that this team exhibited an outstanding use of focus groups, in-home visitation, storyboards, and a socio-linguistic analysis used to identify and validate design attributes through interviews in their target market segment.”

Team Netherlands claimed second place in the Market Potential Contest with 90 points, and Team Daytona Beach took third place with 85 points. Find contest results and overall standings at https://www.solardecathlon.gov/2017/competition-scores.html .

The Swiss Team took first place in engineering with a perfect score of 100 possible points. For the Engineering Contest , each competing house was evaluated by a group of prominent engineers who determined which house best exemplifies excellence in innovation, system functionality, energy efficiency, system reliability, and documentation through their project manual and construction drawings. 

Bob Dixon, presenting the award said, “The jury believes the first place house in the Engineering Contest offers comprehensive performance modeling that sports clear graphs, detailed explanations and a variety of representations. The quality of the thermal envelope is exceptional and carefully calibrated to the target climate with very good resistance to heat flow, a solid focus on air-tightness, and high-quality components such as triple-glazed windows and sliding doors.”

University of Nevada, Las Vegas claimed second place in the Engineering Contest with 98 points, and Northwestern took third place with 95 points.

This year’s collegiate teams were chosen nearly two years ago through a competitive process. The selected teams and their projects represent a diverse range of design approaches, building technologies, and geographic locations, climates and regions – including urban, suburban and rural settings. They also aim to reach a broad range of target housing markets including empty nesters, disaster relief, low income, multigenerational, single family and Native American communities. Teams have gathered their combined interdisciplinary talents to design and build the houses, as well as to raise funds, furnish and decorate the houses, and optimize the houses’ performance.

Cast a vote for your favorite Solar Decathlon house to win the People's Choice Award . Anyone with a Facebook profile can submit a single vote in the poll through tonight at midnight. The People’s Choice Award winner will be broadcast live on Solar Decathlon's Facebook page tomorrow at roughly 10:45 a.m. MDT from the Victory Breakfast.  

Solar Decathlon 2017 teams competing in Denver, Colorado

The Solar Decathlon houses are open to the public for free tours Saturday and Sunday, October 14-15, from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m . Ride the University of Colorado A line commuter rail to the event site at the 61st and Peña Station (search Google Maps for Solar Decathlon) near Denver International Airport. Free parking will be available, as well as $2.00 parking in the solar-covered parking lot operated by RTD (see directions and a map ). For full event information, current standings, high-resolution photos, and videos, visit www.SolarDecathlon.gov . You may also follow the competition in real time on Facebook at Facebook.com/DOESolarDecathlon and Twitter at @Solar_Decathlon . Photos are also available on Flickr at http://www.flickr.com/photos/solar_decathlon/ .

More about the Solar Decathlon

The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon is a collegiate competition made up of 10 contests that challenge student teams to design and build full-size, solar-powered houses. The winner of the competition is the team that best blends design excellence and smart energy production with innovation, market potential, and energy and water efficiency. Competing students gain hands-on experience and unique training that prepares them to enter the energy workforce. Solar Decathlon is more than a student competition. It’s an intensive learning experience for consumers and homeowners as they experience the latest technologies and materials in energy-efficient design, innovative energy technologies, smart home solutions, water conservation measures, electric vehicles, and sustainable buildings.

Solar Decathlon 2017 is made possible by a public-private partnership between the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy and Energetics Incorporated, with the generous support of the Solar Decathlon 2017 supporting sponsors Wells Fargo, the City and County of Denver, and Denver International Airport (DEN), and contributing sponsors L.C. Fulenwider, Schneider Electric, Regional Transportation District, Xcel Energy and Panasonic Enterprise Solutions.

Attachments:

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/Attachm...5a741943c6

Attachments:

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/Attachm...2ccb6b2a8d

Attachments:

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/Attachm...87cfd390b3

EERE Communications U.S. Department of Energy - Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy 720-234-3417 EE.Media@ee.doe.gov