U.S. Department of Energy's 2020 Technology Development Plan for the Door and Window Industry.

1.The introduction

The U.S. Department of Energy released the 2020 technology development plan for the industrial field around 2000. Among them, the Building Technology Office of the Ministry of Energy released the "2020 Door and Window Technology Development Plan" in 2000, also known as the "2020 Door and Window Technology Roadmap". This report focuses on introducing the core content of the plan. In the end, it reviews the implementation progress of the plan and discusses the implications for the development of the door and window industry in some developing countries.

2. Prospects for the Development of the American Door and window industry in 2020

In addition to more than 400 door and window manufacturers, the U.S. door and window industry also includes glass manufacturers, profiles, hardware suppliers, distributors, retailers, and engineering contractors. The industry mainly serves the residential and public building markets. Due to the increasing versatility of doors and windows, the proportion of their wall area in new buildings has increased significantly. More and more use of doors and windows and glass trends.

Although the door and window industry in the United States has been relatively successful in recent years, the challenges it faces in the future are increasingly apparent. Each industry must continue to meet changing societal needs while being economically viable and globally competitive. The current American door and window industry is in a period of rapid technological change. The development of the industry in the fields of glass, frame materials, and whole windows has significantly improved the energy-saving efficiency and quality of doors and windows.

The development direction of door and window technology is dominated by the trends of the door and window industry itself, the national economic situation, and society, and should conform to the development requirements of new and rebuilt buildings. Among them, energy saving, high quality, fast delivery, and low total cost are the key development directions of door and window technology. The competition within and between industries and the introduction of new technologies make the American door and window industry face unprecedented opportunities and challenges. The development prospect of doors and windows in the United States in 2020 is: consumers regard doors and windows as affordable "household appliances on the wall" and doors and windows become active and interactive parts of building systems: their added value is reflected in the provision of energy, entertainment, and Information: At the same time, comfort, natural lighting, safety, beauty and harmony with the natural environment should be enhanced.

^{Figure 1 The development prospect of doors and windows in the United States in 2020}

The From a technical point of view, the development prospect contains five major technical elements:

• Building integration: doors and windows are integrated with other building parts in termsof structure, power, and data exchange;
• Information display: doors and windows have active, passive, or interactive displays oftext or images;
• Energy supply and conservation: doors and windows can become a net provider of building energy throughout the year, or ideally instantaneously;
• Harmonize with the environment: minimize the negative impact on the environment during the life cycle of the door and window products;
• Enhance the traditional performance of doors and windows: improve the performance of doors and windows.

Table 1 Major Factors Affecting the Development of the U.S. Door and Window Industry in 2020 Fierce product competition leads to:

Obstacles in technology, market, and policy will hinder the realization of the development goal of doors and windows in 2020. The main obstacles in terms of technology are: the industry lacks the integration tools and mechanisms needed to realize building integration, and there are differences in the definition of durability and warranty period. In addition, manufacturing, materials, and research expenses are relatively high; market constraints The main obstacles are lack of demand brought by training and high initial investment costs; the main obstacles in terms of policies and regulations are: different and poorly implemented building regulations contradict the development goals of the industry and the US Department of Energy, followed by related Regulations are not enforced enough.

3. Technology Roadmap of the U.S. Door and Window Industry

To achieve the strategic development goals for 2020, after investigation and arrangement, a technology roadmap for the American door and window industry is proposed, including 8 key research areas, 65 key technologies (see Table 2), and technical priorities for phased research (see Table 3 ).

The 8 key research areas in the technology roadmap are:

1. Image display area - display images or text on the surface of the window;
2. Development of solar power generation materials for windows in the field of energy production and supply;
3. Sunlight transmission field - control of radiant light and heat through doors and windows;
4. Insulation field - control of heat transfer through doors and windows;
5. Area of Analytical Tools - modeling and development of software tools for phenomena related to Windows;
6. Manufacturing field - equipment and processes for the production of doors, windows, and their accessories;
7. Design field - design of building systems with existing doors and windows;
8. Electronic product field - development of integrated components for controlling and driving the performance of doors and windows.

Table 2 The 65 technologies needed to realize the 2020 US window and door development prospects

Table 3 Research Key Points of U.S. Door and Window Technology Stages

4. Risk Analysis of Technology Development

For the stage research priorities suggested in Table 3, relevant institutions or enterprises should select suitable fields and research projects according to their own technology and market development direction, the contribution rate of each technology to the prospect, and the degree of risk.The so-called contribution rate is a quantitative index/example of the contribution to the five major technical elements of the development prospect of the door and window industry in 2020. Low-E film technology has a high contribution rate to "energy supply and conservation", while it has a high contribution rate to "information display" The contribution rate is low.The so-called degree of risk. It is a comprehensive quantitative indicator of the risk level and uncertainty level of investment. The composition of the indicators is shown in Table 4c. value is 3), then the risk index is the average value of the two (3), indicating that the risk level of this technical research is high. However, high risk does not necessarily mean low reward.

Table 4 Composition of risk indicators

Tables 5 to 9 show the contribution rate and sum of the above-mentioned 65 technologies to the five technical elements of "building integration", "information display", "energy supply and conservation", "coordination with the environment" and "enhancing the traditional performance of doors and windows". The degree of risk can help companies formulate research directions and investment plans.

Table 5 Contribution rate of research projects to "building integration" and degree of investment risk

Table 6 Contribution rate of research projects to "image display" and degree of investment risk

Table 7 Contribution rate of research projects to "energy supply and conservation" and degree of investment risk

Table 8 Contribution rate of research projects to "coordinating with the environment" and degree of investment risk

Table 9 Contribution rate of research projects to "enhancing the traditional performance of doors and windows" and the degree of investment risk

5. Implementation of Technology Roadmap

5.1 Main measures for the door and window industry in the near, medium, and long term

To achieve the goal of door and window development in 2020, the main measures that the door and window industry should take priority in terms of technology, market, and policy are listed in Table 10.

5.2 The formulation of the roadmap for industry participation lays a solid foundation for its implementation

In the process of the U.S. Department of Energy formulating the development prospect and technology roadmap of the U.S. door and window industry for 20 years, it has received extensive support from the door and window industry and key enterprises, laying a solid foundation for the next step. Among them, associations and energy-saving organizations include the U.S. building manufacturers Association (American Architectural Manufacturers Association, AAMA), Plate Glass Manufacturers Council (Plate Glass Manufacturers Council), Door and Window Rating Council (National Fenestration Rating Council, NFRC), Door and Window Manufacturers Association (Window and Door Manufacturers Association, WDMA), Alliance to Save Energy (ASE), Efficient Windows Collaborative (EWC), and large door and window companies include Andersen Corporation A Gilkey Window Company, Marvin, Pella Corporation, Velux, etc. The four major glass companies include AFG, Cardinal IG, Guardian, LOF, and PPG. The research institutions include NAHB Research Center and Aspen Research Corporation. In addition, there are profile companies and design companies. The active participation of the industry is the key to the implementation of the technology roadmap.

Table 10 The main measures of the door and window industry in the near, medium, and long term

5.3 Government-enterprise Cooperation and joint investment in technology development

To achieve the established goals for the development of the door and window industry, the roadmap emphasizes the importance of cooperation between the U.S. government and other industries. To achieve the long-term research goal, the U.S. government provides financial support for technology research and development in the following seven research areas:

• a) develop long-life photovoltaic products to be able to be incorporated into window and door products;
• b) Develop excellent thermal insulation materials and components for door and window products;
• c) Develop auxiliary analysis tools to help companies design and market energy-efficient windows and doors;
• d) development of measurement and evaluation methods for the life of window and door products;
• e) Development of integrated electronic products for door and window products;
• f) Support, standardize and identify areas of application for technological innovations including revolutionary materials and manufacturing processes;
• g) Develop new products to promote consumers to upgrade the configuration of doors and windows according to the improvement of performance, that is, the products are replaceable, portable, modular, and have high added value.

5.4 Government-enterprise cooperation to jointly break down market and policy barriers

While technical activity is important, R&D efforts alone will not achieve the goal. Therefore, the roadmap also emphasizes that the U.S. government and the door and window industry continue to collaborate to determine and overcome market and policy barriers faced by the door and window industry, including the following ten items.

• a) Realize building integration for different components, define interface standards and protocols;
• b) Establish communication channels in the industry to jointly discuss common issues in training, scientific research, and cooperation;
• c) Planning and developing necessary hardware for building integration;
• d) develop performance evaluation methods in terms of comfort, system integration, energy, cost, and environmental impact;
• e) develop measurement methods for evaluating integrated systems;
• f) Develop a product rating system based on durability;
• g) Formulate appropriate service life and warranty period for different door and window components;
• h) understand current technology and future applications, and determine technical requirements based on user expectations;
• i) Educate stakeholders and end consumers on the long-term cost-effectiveness of high-performance products;
• j) Provide incentives, such as financing discounts, low-interest loans, maybe included in the Energy Star framework.

6. The progress

The 2020 Door and Window Technology Roadmap formulated by the U.S. Department of Energy in 1999 is a long-term plan to guide the government and enterprises in scientific research and development. It sets industry development goals and identifies barriers in technology, market, and policy. The focus is on eight 65 technologies proposed in each field, and the contribution rate of each technology to the long-term goal and the degree of investment risk was quantitatively analyzed. At the same time, the implementation mechanism and priority measures of the roadmap were proposed.

Today, the implementation time of the plan has been fully realized. A rough review of the plan and implementation results can easily find that the door and window industry in the United States develops according to this plan. In terms of policies, the energy-saving standards for residential buildings in the three major regions of the United States have been integrated into the IEC energy-saving standards under the ICC. Four editions have been published in 2000, 2003, 2006, and 2009, which have become the model standards for residential energy-saving regulations in the United States; Incorporate into the "Energy Star" system, and correspondingly introduce supporting economic incentives, which are written into the US energy-saving regulations and economic stimulus laws. In terms of government investment, on the one hand, the government continues to evaluate and predict future technologies to guide enterprises and consumers; Funding for research and development of chromic and thermochromic glass. In terms of technology research and development, with the development of solar photovoltaic power generation technology and the reduction of costs, the trend of doors and windows as solutions for energy supply and conservation, environmental coordination, and building integration is also becoming more and more obvious. Substantial progress has been made in terms of insulating glass and durability.

7. The revelations

At the beginning of getting the "2020 Door and Window Technology Roadmap", we only focused on the U.S. government's formulation of energy-saving technology plans, but after reading the full text, we further discovered the practical significance of the plan.

From the perspective of thinking, planning effectively expands the functions of doors and windows. As mentioned in the article, doors, and windows are regarded as "household appliances on the wall" and become active and interactive parts of the building system. In addition to natural lighting, In addition to safety and energy saving, it also has functions such as dimming, color matching, providing energy, entertainment, and information, as well as self-cleaning and environmental protection, and coordination with the natural environment.

The planning content and research methods are rich and profound. Research the aspects of increasing door and window functions, improving quality, reducing costs, coordinating with the environment, building integration, analysis tools, and various factors, contribution rates, and risk quantitative analysis. 65 technical research contents in eight areas have been determined. In addition, door and window products are modularized. The concept of doors and windows as a solution for environmental coordination and energy supply and conservation, the systematization and guiding features of the planning content, and the easy-to-read and concise features of the form are all worthy of reference for our country.In the process of formulating the planning and roadmap, the government, associations, enterprises, research and design institutions, etc. cooperated and participated extensively. The government and enterprises cooperate to jointly invest and develop, and jointly break down market and policy barriers.

The plan has strong pertinence and practical value. "More than half of the time", basically more than half of the implementation, basically consistent with the roadmap, has played an important role in guiding and promoting the effective development of the industry.

In addition, building energy consumption in some developing countries accounts for about 27% to 29% of the total energy consumption in the country, of which about 50% is lost through building window glass, which is about three times that of developed countries with the same climate. Taking 2008 as an example, the energy consumption lost through building window glass was equivalent to about 390 million tons of standard coal, and the emission of CO₂ was about 1 billion tons. Therefore, one of the keys to building energy conservation lies in the development of high-performance building doors and window glass and related technologies, such as high-efficiency energy-saving, photovoltaic power generation, self-cleaning and environmental protection, dimming and color adjustment, high-strength and light-weight building door and window glass and related standards, evaluation methods, etc. However, to well develop architectural door and window glass and related technologies, it is necessary to have a good development plan to guide relevant institutions and enterprises to formulate research directions and investment plans. The 2020 door and window technology development plan of the U.S. Department of Energy has a good reference value for some developing countries to formulate door and window energy-saving technology plans.

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