redefining affordable housing
through energy efficiency
The New River Center for Energy Research and Training (NRCERT) was established in 1999 and provides training in state-of-the-art residential energy conservation techniques, home performance testing, and heating and cooling equipment diagnostics, repair and replacement. NRCERT also performs research for leaders in the field, resulting in significant technical advancements for the industry.
training
NRCERT's training focuses on home performance as a whole house approach, with the goal of creating homes that are good for people, good for the environment, and good for business. Technicians are taught practices and techniques that reduce energy consumption, address health and safety concerns, and determine how the building shell, appliances and occupants interact with one another.
Detailed curricula and innovative models support these training efforts. NRCERT trains about 1,500 participants each year at national, regional and state conferences at on-site locations throughout the country and at the NRCERT facility in Christiansburg, Virginia.
research
NRCERT consistently performs research that has resulted in advancements in the field. NRCERT's innovative techniques were demonstrated in 1999 when they contracted with Lockheed Martin Energy Research Corporation's Oak Ridge National Laboratory to field- test monitoring instrumentation, download monitoring data, and perform advanced sealing retrofits on duct systems. NRCERT's methods were so successful that Carrier Corporation purchased the process and equipment before the results of the project could be formally reported.
Using U.S. Department of Energy Weatherization Assistance Program funds, NRCERT also performed work in 2002 for the Mid-Atlantic Region Weatherization Directors Association that has greatly improved the use of computerized energy audits for garden-style multifamily buildings.
house of pressure
NRCERT developed the House of Pressure to complement its training activities. This unique training aide is used to visually demonstrate pressure and air flow dynamics within a residence.
The model has the ability to create and control airflow with working scaled reproductions of mechanical air distribution systems that are found in most residential homes. The use of the House of Pressure can greatly reduce the amount of lecture time required to describe the information presented, and can be purchased by others to be used for educational purposes.
The New River Center for Energy Research and Training (NRCERT) was established in 1999 and provides training in state-of-the-art residential energy conservation techniques, home performance testing, and heating and cooling equipment diagnostics, repair and replacement. NRCERT also performs research for leaders in the field, resulting in significant technical advancements for the industry.
NRCERT's training focuses on home performance as a whole house approach, with the goal of creating homes that are good for people, good for the environment, and good for business. Technicians are taught practices and techniques that reduce energy consumption, address health and safety concerns, and determine how the building shell, appliances and occupants interact with one another.
Detailed curricula and innovative models support these training efforts. NRCERT trains about 1,500 participants each year at national, regional and state conferences at on-site locations throughout the country and at the NRCERT facility in Christiansburg, Virginia. 
NRCERT developed the House of Pressure to complement its training activities. This unique training aide is used to visually demonstrate pressure and air flow dynamics within a residence.
The model has the ability to create and control airflow with working scaled reproductions of mechanical air distribution systems that are found in most residential homes. The use of the House of Pressure can greatly reduce the amount of lecture time required to describe the information presented, and can be purchased by others to be used for educational purposes. 