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The Building America Program has helped Pulte Tucson improve its customer satisfaction with comfortable, energy-efficient homes.
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In 1986, Pulte Homes of Tucson, Ariz., was suffering from a lack of customer satisfaction. Warranty requests and customer complaints were on the rise. The division even faced lawsuits for construction and material defects in their homes. Since that time, however, Pulte has completely turned the division around, and were recently ranked #1 for Tucson in the J.D. Power and Associates 2003 New Home Builder Customer Satisfaction Study. The Tucson Division accomplished this feat with the help of the Department of Energy’s Building America program.
Pulte finally realized that to buyers, "value is as important as cost," according to Alan Kennedy, vice president of construction for Pulte Tucson. Pulte found that energy efficiency, ease of maintenance and builder reputation were among the most important qualities homebuyers looked for in a new home. So Pulte turned to Building America for help. As Kennedy points out, "A large part of achieving these qualities has been our work with the Building Science Consortium through the Building America program."
The Building America Program has helped this Pulte division think of homebuilding in a whole new way, introducing them to the idea of the home as a complete system and helping them to incorporate new designs, technologies, and construction practices. In 1998, Pulte Tucson completed its first Building America home, and now all homes are built to the Building America standard. In fact, the Tucson Division has two full-time team members devoted to performance testing and construction inspections.
All of this has led to overall improvements in the quality of the Tucson Division’s homes. Copper Moon, a development of 1,332 to 1,618 square-foot homes, employs several best practices to achieve a high level of performance. The shells of Copper Moon homes use 2x6 construction and the studs of the exterior walls are spaced at 24-inch on-center, allowing for improved insulation values. In addition, all attics are sealed and unvented. Pulte uses a cathedralized insulation technique to seal the attics, which consists of stapled netting and sprayed-in-cellulose, a nontoxic material made from recycled newspaper. The furnace and ductwork are contained within the attic to further improve efficiency. Pulte uses a 92.6% efficient heating unit and seals every duct connection with mastic. As a result of all of these measures, Pulte Tucson is "able to reduce air conditioning tonnage by nearly 50%," according to Kennedy.
All of these measures contribute to comfortable, energy-efficient houses. The results are astounding. Pulte Tucson has 10 communities under full development; two thirds of their customers have recommended Pulte three times or more; and Pulte Tucson was one of 12 Pulte divisions ranked #1 in customer satisfaction in the J.D. Power and Associates 2003 New Home Builder Customer Satisfaction Study. This achievement could not have come without assistance from the Building America program. "They helped us take the initiative to become innovative," says Kennedy.
This information is provided by the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Building America program. Building America is a private/public partnership that develops energy solutions for new and existing homes. The Building America program combines the knowledge and resources of industry leaders with the DOE’s technical capabilities. Together, they act as a catalyst for change in the home-building industry.
For more information about the Building Science consortium, click here.
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