Clayton, the largest builder in the manufactured housing industry, is moving toward constructing all new residential manufactured homes to meet the Department of Energy’s Zero Energy Ready Home specifications by Jan. 1.
These solar-ready homes, available to order in July 2023, will include enhanced energy efficiency features that significantly reduce energy costs for homeowners. Leadership at Clayton also said the effort furthers the company’s commitment to broader sustainability goals.
“We are driven to make energy efficient homes an attainable option for home buyers across the country,” Clayton CEO Kevin Clayton said. “Energy efficiency is crucial for lowering monthly utility costs and maintaining long-term affordability.”
DOE Zero Energy Ready Homes are built inside a DOE-certified building facility. They are designed with energy-efficient features that can offset up to 100 percent of the home’s energy use when combined with a renewable energy system, such as solar panels. Every DOE Zero Energy Ready Home must meet rigorous efficiency requirements, making it less costly for homeowners if they choose to add solar.
All Clayton DOE Zero Energy Ready Homes will be equipped with enhanced energy-efficient features including:
- Rheem ® hybrid heat pump water heater
- Low-E windows with argon gas
- SmartComfort ® by Carrier high-efficiency heat pump or gas furnace
- ENERGY STAR ® certified appliances
- LED lighting throughout
- An ecobee ® smart thermostat,
- and additional insulation.
To deliver additional value to the consumer, Clayton is reinvesting the credits received for building the certified homes to offset the cost of materials, the company stated.
Clayton plans to have 39 manufactured home building facilities throughout the U.S. DOE certified and building homes to DOE Zero Energy Ready Home specifications.
The milestone toward net zero energy is the latest in Clayton’s sustainability efforts.
In 2014, Clayton began working toward ISO® 14001:2015, the gold standard of environmental management systems, across all of its home building and supply facilities. Clayton said the program has resulted in a significant reduction of waste in operations through improved resource management and landfill diversion efforts. Last year alone, Clayton diverted more than 100 million pounds of waste from landfills through recycling efforts at their home building and supply facilities.
Clayton’s national sustainability efforts also include reducing emissions through practices such as fleet modernization and increased investment in solar power at its home office and building facilities near Knoxville. In addition, Clayton, in partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation ®, is committed to planting 4.47 million native trees by 2025 to help restore vital forest ecosystems across the country.
The company was founded in 1956 and today is one of the largest builders in the country, offering manufactured homes — including CrossMod ® homes, — modular homes, apartments, site-built homes, tiny homes, college dormitories, and military barracks.
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