KNOXVILLE — The University of Tennessee, Knoxville’s Team Living Light has a long road to the Solar Decathlon competition next fall but with each pledge of support the team receives, their journey gets easier.
Thanks to the support of Kawneer Company, Inc., an Alcoa company and the leading manufacturer of architectural aluminum products, the Living Light team got another leg up in their quest to win the international competition.
As a sponsor, Kawneer will be donating several products to the team for construction on the Living Light house, the team’s entry into the competition administered by the United States Department of Energy (DOE). The competition — to design and build an energy-efficient house powered exclusively by the sun — will take place in late September 2011.
Kawneer will be donating components for the storefront, curtain wall, entrances and windows and assisting the team with installation and glazing of the systems. As an industry leader, the company has a long history of supporting current and future architects, designers and engineers as they work to find more environmentally responsible and efficient solutions to everyday building challenges.
“Kawneer’s donation has been a great help to our project,” said Megan Chafin, a graduate assistant on the Living Light project. “Not only are they giving us the materials we need but they have been very generous with their time helping us with our design. Our double-façade made up of Kawneer’s storefront and curtain wall systems is one of the most important features of our project, and it’s great to be able to showcase their products. We hope to continue our partnership long after the competition is over.”
Designed to educate participants and the public about the benefits of energy-efficient systems and construction, the U.S. DOE Solar Decathlon features 20 collegiate teams. UT Knoxville’s team is composed of undergraduate and graduate students and faculty in the Colleges of Architecture and Design, Engineering, Business Administration and the School of Art. When they present their project in October, the team will have spent nearly two years designing and building the Living Light house.
“Kawneer is dedicated to developing innovative, sustainable products and systems that help architects achieve the design and performance goals of their buildings,” said Kimberly Ferro, Vice President, Marketing and Product Development for Kawneer North America. “The Solar Decathlon, the DOE and institutions like The University of Tennessee are driving research on such key topics as energy efficiency and solar control. Kawneer is excited to be a part of the Living Light team and looks forward to a final product that gives us further insight into the next generation of fenestration product design.”
For more information about the Solar Decathlon competition visit http://www.solardecathlon.gov. To learn more about UT’s Living Light team visit http://www.livinglight.utk.edu. For more information about Kawneer or its range of products, visit http://www.kawneer.com.