I'm in the early stages building a home in Philadelphia and am searching for an architect and later for a builder. The architects and builders I've spoken with have little to no first hand experience designing for or building with SIPs. They're willing to try SIPs if I specify them but they wouldn't go that route without some outside force.

For SIPs to shine the architect has to design with them in mind. For SIPs to remain cost competitive builders have to know how to allocate labor and resources. So that leaves an end consumer like me with the choice of forcing the decision to use SIPs and footing the bill to educate the designer and builder.

What manufacturer resources exist that I could connect my architect and builder with in order to get them up to speed on working with SIPs? I know about websites and books but I'm thinking more along the line of professional consulting and support services. Services that are steeply discounted or free for the first project in order to get the design and build staff up to speed. In the tech industry it's not uncommon to offer pre-sales and post-sales technical support with the purchase of a product. Like SIPS these products can be implemented in many different scenarios with varying impact on the overall environment or system. After the initial support term expires manufacturers charge for ongoing support either as-needed or on a contract. This removes much of the fear of buying and implementing a new product.

Thanks,
Adam

Adam,
SIPs are a consumer driven industry, not the buider
, most builders only care about their bottom line and not your best interest
I find that most builders have no interst in learning anything new, as it takes them out of their comfort level.
Architects have some interest, but things won't really change until the demand from consumers pushes acceptance to the tipping point.

Posted By cmkavala on 06 Mar 2013 08:40 PM
Adam,
SIPs are a consumer driven industry, not the buider
, most builders only care about their bottom line and not your best interest
I find that most builders have no interst in learning anything new, as it takes them out of their comfort level.
Architects have some interest, but things won't really change until the demand from consumers pushes acceptance to the tipping point.

Amen!  I have found it is much easier to build with alternative technology without the builder.  Almost all of my projects have been built without a builder because in most cases I could not get a builder to bid.  A homeowner (man or woman) that has enough free time can build with quality provided they have at least one knowledgeable person working with them.

Adam, Check out SIP School dot org. They do SIP design and installation classes. richm

Chris K., You're absolutely right, the SIP market is being driven by forward-thinking end consumers and early adopting developers.

Due to a bottom-up push for use of SIPs, the adoption rate is painfully slow. SIPs have been commercially available for 40+ years and yet they still aren't "mainstream". So the question becomes, why has adoption been so slow? Maybe SIPs aren't as great as we think they are? However, for the purpose of this post let's accept that SIPs are a superior building product when compared to traditional stick frame construction (we can debate that in another thread). Let's also accept that they can be cost competitive when designed for and used properly. So then, what is preventing them from seeing wider use throughout the US? Is it policy, building codes, availability, or is there a fundamental lack of awareness in the industry that SIPs are a competitive option?

I think that what's missing is a well guided push to educate from the top down rather than the bottom up. Take medical surgery for example, when a new device or procedure is developed the manufacturer sends trainers to educate the surgeon, and supporting hospital staff. The hope is that the surgeon will then pimp the product to his or her patients. The same is true for the telecom industry, chemical development, pharmaceuticals, robotics, and even elsewhere in the construction industry. When Dewalt releases a novel fastener or Miller releases a new alloy welding rod they inform the distributors through outreach, education, and advertising directed at the people that will use the products.

Imagine if Miller opted to direct advertising of their new "Weld-Rod-X" at end consumers. Everyone has something made of metal, cars, railings, BBQ grill, bicycle, etc... So essentially Miller would need to reach the total population and hope that people begin specifying that they will only buy bicycles welded with Miller "Weld-Rod-X". It's silly to imagine and it just wouldn't work. The bottom-up model works no better for the imaginary "Weld-Rod-X" than it does for a SIP panel. Home buyers on the whole don't care only about the look of their home not what's in the walls.

For SIPs to take off the industry needs to directly educate and promote the technology to architects, builders, and policy makers. There's a huge opportunity waiting to be tapped.

Adam

Rich,
I've looked over the materials at http://www.sipschool.com and it's an interesting site. Thanks for reminding me that it exists. If I can find the time later this spring or summer I'll attend one of their classes.

Cheers,
Adam

Posted By snadam on 08 Mar 2013 04:06 PM
For SIPs to take off the industry needs to directly educate and promote the technology to architects, builders, and policy makers. There's a huge opportunity waiting to be tapped.

Adam

I feel like such a tool. Immediately after composing that long winded post about the industry needing to step up I found the SIPA site. It appears that SIPA is trying to do exactly what I described.
:embarrassed:

Adam