Somfy and Draper Launch Sustainable Housing Program

Somfy, the manufacturer of motors for interior window coverings and exterior solar protections, and Draper, the window shades fabricator, launched a pilot program for sustainable housing in Clovis, CA.

The launch event was attended by Congressman Vince Fong, who has been actively involved in lowering energy costs in the state. Also in attendance were Maryellen Oswald, Somfy partnerships business development manager, one of the homeowners participating in the project, and Roman Khaschuck from IHS Fresno, the installer of the shades, who provided a demonstration of how the automated shades work.

The pilot program was launched for a select group of highly energy efficient single-family homes in Clovis and has the support of the California Building Industry Association. The Clovis homes feature automated shading systems from Somfy that utilize existing power consumption monitoring tools to gather energy savings data.

Homeowners will be able to compare utility usage from previous years to the current year and see in real-time the savings they’ve made from the automated shading systems.

“Today, I got to tour this innovative project with Somfy and Draper,” said Rep. Vince Fong (CA-20) at the event. “They showed me their cutting-edge strategies like the automated shading systems, which are designed to help relieve strain on the energy usage in our state and assist with cost-effectiveness for homeowners. In learning about the energy-saving technology, they demonstrated the steps they are taking in reducing the cost of homeownership, high utility costs, and the burden on our power grid in California. Thank you Somfy and Draper for implementing your work in the Central Valley to help local residents save money.”

As the State of California aims to reduce energy consumption through efficient technologies, it is vital to understand how homeowners interact with and benefit from their homes’ automated energy saving features. Using efficient technologies like Somfy’s automated shades will be critical for the California Energy Commission and California’s public utilities to monitor energy usage and savings and implement new technology. Using the data like that gathered from the shades, the Commission will eventually have the ability to further lower utility costs for all Californians.