About: REHAU® MONTANA ecosmart house Project

Project Overview

The REHAU MONTANA ecosmart house is a project sponsored by REHAU, an international manufacturer of polymer-based innovations and systems, and led by the Creative Research Lab (CRLab) at Montana State University (MSU).

This residential construction and research project aims to expand the industry's body of knowledge regarding environmental and human sustainability. The REHAU MONTANA ecosmart house incorporates a series of energy-efficient, sustainable building products as well as an overall holistic design approach addressing human sustainability considerations such as telemedicine and aging-in-place.

A Near Net-Zero House
Almost everyone has heard by now of homes that are built to be sustainable, green or energy-efficient. But what is a “net-zero” home? To qualify for net-zero status, a home must produce more energy than it consumes over the course of a year. The goal of the REHAU MONTANA ecosmart house is to achieve near net-zero status by combining on-site power generation with efficiency measures to meet most of its own energy requirements.

Residential Green Building Standards
Also during the research phase, the project team will determine the best way to achieve the residential building certification standards of ENERGY STAR, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), the National Green Building Standard and others.