Building Envelope Innovation Prize - Secondary Glazing Systems

This afternoon, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Building Technologies Office (BTO) announced seven Phase 1 winners at an event held in Washington, DC. These seven teams won $50,000 each for their high-performance, cost-effective secondary glazing system (SGS) design concept submissions and the chance to compete in Phase 2 – Prototype.  

The prize will offer $2.1 million across three phases to incentivize the development and production of new SGS designs. In Phase 1 – Design Concept, competitors submitted innovative, market ready solutions and shared early data on their SGS’s performance metrics. 

We are thrilled to announce the Phase 1 – Design Concept winners! 

AeroShield Materials Inc. (Waltham, Massachusetts) shared a design using advanced materials with significant potential for advancing the state-of-the-art performance of SGS with broad applicability across a variety of systems. 

Alpen High Performance Products (Louisville, Colorado) developed a project focused on reducing the costs of an existing on-site manufactured product that scales price with performance. Alpen’s SGS solution is low cost and high performance with short installation times. 

EnvisionWall (Flushing, New York) designed a cost-effective, quick retrofit option designed for installation over windows that can and cannot open. 

Indow (Portland, Oregon) created a design concept incorporating vacuum-insulated glazing within an SGS frame. Indow’s design offers the possibility of improved thermal performance in a product that can be installed easily and quickly. 

Thermalswitch Building Envelope Extension by StudioTJOA Inc. (Erie, Colorado) devised a product that accounts for different performance levels and climates, with advanced thermal performance and a simple design. 

Team QUANTA 3.0 (Lancaster, Pennsylvania) evolved its design model to combine vacuum-insulated glazing with shade control in an innovative solution that boasts variety in applications and levels of performance. 

WexEnergy (Rochester, New York) conceived a unique product that provides a solution for operable windows with lower initial costs, quick installation, and short payback periods. 

These seven solutions are innovating a retrofit technique that does not require opening up walls to increase building energy efficiency while still reducing both installation time and cost. 

 We are looking forward to Phase 2 – Prototype, which is now open for submissions (only Phase 1 winners are eligible to compete in Phase 2)! We have also made a modification to the Official Rules, which reflects that DOE will award up to seven winners, instead of five winners, in the Design Concept Phase. 

Don’t miss this chance to win up to $1 million for your innovative SGS design concept. Follow the official rules and submit to HeroX by 5 pm ET for your chance to win a cash prize and move on to the next phase. We highly encourage teams to start their submissions early, allowing several hours before the deadline to avoid any technical difficulties. The portal for submissions will close at 5:00 pm ET. 

We can't wait to read your submissions. If you have any trouble accessing the system before 5 pm please email . 

Phase 1 submissions for the Building Envelope Innovation Prize: Secondary Glazing Systems are due tomorrow at 5:00 pm ET! Don’t miss this chance to win up to $1 million for your innovative SGS design concept. 

Successful submissions will include:

• Cover page
• Submission summary slide
• Engineering drawings of SGS prototype
• Design Concept narrative
• Letters of commitment or support (optional)

We highly recommend reading the official rules carefully to understand the eligible SGS technologies and submission requirements. If you have questions, please reach out to the prize team at . 

We look forward to reading your submissions!

Thank you to those who joined office hours for the Building Envelope Innovation Prize - Secondary Glazing Systems!

Prize administrators and windows experts from the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory reviewed the prize goals, requirements, and answered competitor questions live. View the office hours recording and presentation slides to find answers to your critical questions.

A Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) document is also available on HeroX, based on questions from the office hours and general email inquiries. 

We look forward to reviewing your Phase 1 submission by June 13, 5 p.m. ET!

The deadline to join Phase 1–Design Concept of the Building Envelope Innovation Prize is quickly approaching! Submit your novel SGS design concepts to HeroX by June 13 at 5 pm ET to be considered and have a chance to move on to Phase 2–Prototype with a cash award!

Phase 1 – Design Concept offers up to $50K in cash prizes for up to 5 winners.

Teams will develop novel SGS design concepts that meet the goals of innovating the commercial buildings industry and increase adoption of SGS technologies for commercial retrofits. The key goal of Phase 1 will be to have products with improved value propositions, leading to higher returns on investment. If you have questions about the submission requirements or process, please read the official rules and reach out to . 

We look forward to reading your submissions!