WeatherTRAK Selected Top-10 Green Building Product for 2006
Proven Smart Irrigation Controllers Conserve Water and Reduce
Runoff Pollution
U.S. Green Building Council Green Build Conference, Denver,
CO, November 15, 2006 - the WeatherTRAK smart irrigation
solution (www.weathertrak.com) from HydroPoint Data Systems,
Inc. has been selected as one of the 2006 Top-10 Green Building
Products by the editors of Environmental Building News and
GreenSpec®. This annual award recognizes the most innovative and
exciting green building products added to the GreenSpec®
Directory during the past year or covered in Environmental
Building News.
"Our selections of the Top-10 Green Building Products represent
a wide range of product types," noted GreenSpec coeditor Alex
Wilson. Three of this year's winning products save energy. Two
products save water. Three products are green in part because
they are made from recycled waste; one is a system of salvaging
material. Rounding out the list are a relatively new way of
turning an ordinary material, concrete, into one of the best
flooring options for commercial buildings, and another is a
provider of renewable energy credits (an excellent way for a
building owner to support renewable energy). "Most of the Top-10
products this year have multiple environmental attributes," said
Wilson.
The Top-10 product selections, as in previous years, are drawn
primarily from new additions to the company's GreenSpec product
directory. More than 250 products have been added to the
GreenSpec database during the past year. "New products seem to
be appearing at an ever-faster pace," said Wilson. The GreenSpec
database his company maintains now includes more than 2,100
product listings, representing several times as many actual
products. A big driver in the development of green products
continues to be the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED® Rating
System, which awards points for the use of certain product types
or for the energy or water savings that certain green products
can achieve. "Designers of LEED buildings are looking for green
products, and manufacturers are responding," said Wilson.
Eligible for several green building programs, the WeatherTRAK
smart irrigation solution is proven to conserve water and
eliminate non-point source runoff pollution. The conservation
opportunity posed by landscape irrigation is significant. Nearly
60 percent of non-agricultural water is applied to landscapes,
and ordinary irrigation timers overwater landscapes by 30 to 300
percent. WeatherTRAK controllers eliminate overwatering by
automatically adjusting irrigation schedules based on local
weather conditions. By using WeatherTRAK to apply the right
amount of water at the right time, builders and homeowners
improve landscape health, decrease water usage costs and protect
the environment.
About Green Spec GreenSpec is the leading national directory of
green building products. Products are selected by editors of
Environmental Building News (EBN) based on criteria developed
over the past 15 years. Manufacturers do not pay to be listed in
GreenSpec, and neither GreenSpec nor EBN carries advertising;
both are supported by users of the information. "Our policy of
not accepting money from manufacturers allows us to be objective
in our review of products," said Wilson. A new 7th edition of
the printed GreenSpec Directory will be published in 2007. The
GreenSpec product database is also available online as part of
the BuildingGreen Suite, which is growing quickly in popularity.
Environmental Building News, founded in 1992, is the oldest and
most widely respected newsletter in the green building field.
BuildingGreen, Inc. celebrates its 21st year in business this
year. For information on BuildingGreen resources, visit
www.BuildingGreen.com or call 800-861-0954.
About HydroPoint Data Systems, Inc. HydroPoint provides
WeatherTRAK smart irrigation solutions directly and through the
Toro® and Irritrol® brands. WeatherTRAK solutions enable
ten-thousand customers, including Fortune 1000 companies,
private individuals, municipalities and water districts, to
achieve dramatic ROI through efficient outdoor water management.
More than 20 independent studies prove that WeatherTRAK systems
virtually eliminate overwatering and runoff pollution while they
improve landscape health and appearance. Based on this track
record of success, WeatherTRAK solutions are eligible for all
water agency rebate programs and meet the State of California's
new performance standards for irrigation equipment (Assembly
Bill 1881). Headquartered in Petaluma, California, HydroPoint is
privately owned and operated. For more information, visit
www.weathertrak.com.