Honda Smart Home to Demonstrate Zero-Carbon Living and Mobility at the University of California, Davis

TORRANCE, Calif. April 23, 2013 /3BL Media/  – American Honda Motor Co., Inc. today announced its plan to create the Honda Smart Home US, a showcase for environmental innovation and renewable energy enabling technologies that demonstrates Honda’s vision for sustainable, zero-carbon living and personal mobility, including the use of solar power to charge a Honda Fit EV battery electric vehicle. A groundbreaking today at the construction site on the campus of the University of California, Davis, marked the start of the building process, which will be documented and shared through the Honda Smart Home US website.

Envisioning a lifestyle of renewable energy for home and transportation, the Honda Smart Home US will feature new and emerging technologies to greatly reduce the amount of energy consumed by individual households, and will provide a pathway for the full integration of electric vehicles into the home.

The hi-tech sustainable home will demonstrate an approach to meeting the state of California’s goal of requiring all new residential construction to be “zero net energy” by 2020. It is expected to produce more energy than it consumes, using less than half of the energy of a similarly sized new home in the Davis area for heating, cooling, and lighting.

The Honda Smart Home will also give its occupants comprehensive control over all home systems, allowing the residents to remotely and continually monitor and adjust all aspects of energy use in real time.

Among the many technologies that will be applied to the Honda Smart Home US:

• Solar Power System

A photovoltaic (PV) system will provide the energy for the home and for daily commuting in an all-electric vehicle like the Honda Fit EV. The zero net energy home will generate, on average, more electricity from on-site renewable power sources than it will receive from its electric utility provider.

• Honda Energy Management System

The Honda Energy Management System introduces a smart-grid technology that will actively manage energy use and communicate with the homeowner and utility provider, allowing the home to maximize its energy efficiency while responding to the needs of the electrical grid, thereby minimizing the impacts of solar generation and electric vehicle charging on the utility grid.

• High-efficiency HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) and Lighting System designed by UC Davis

UC Davis energy research centers will design high-efficiency, cost effective solutions to major home energy loads. UC Davis researchers will explore new methods for geothermal heating and cooling, and a new circadian color control logic LED lighting system to improve quality of life while reducing energy consumption.

• Direct solar PV-to-vehicle charging

Direct PV-to-vehicle DC battery charging will substantially improve charging efficiency by reducing losses associated with DC-to-AC and AC-to-DC conversion.  “PV-to-EV” charging will decrease CO₂ emitted in the lifecycle of an electric vehicle by avoiding the carbon associated with grid electricity production.

• Certified “Green” Home

The home will be designed to achieve top-level green building certifications from the major U.S. rating systems. With a holistic approach to sustainability, the home will feature passive design elements as well as novel materials to further reduce CO₂ emissions from the production of building materials and the construction and operation of the home.

Honda anticipates construction of the Honda Smart Home, at a site in the UC Davis West Village development, to be completed by the end of 2013.  The home will be leased to individuals associated with UC Davis, though further details have not been finalized.

In 2012, Honda unveiled the Honda Smart Home System (HSHS) in the city of Saitama, Japan. The HSHS project includes two homes: one is a demonstration-only home while the other serves as a residence for Honda associates. Both feature comprehensive controls of in-house energy supply and demand, and help manage both the generation and consumption of energy for the home.

Executive Quotes

“With Honda Smart Home US we will showcase our vision for a lifestyle that produces zero CO₂ and that could even save consumers money,” said Steve Center, vice president of the Environmental Business Development Office of American Honda Motor Co., Inc.   “Home energy use and personal mobility account for most of an individual’s carbon emissions. By addressing both sources together, we are advancing technologies that will reduce carbon and eventually transform home design.”

“As an academic leader in sustainability research, UC Davis is proud to be the site of this innovative research home, which will take us to the next level of energy research and deployment,” said Energy Efficiency Center director Nicole Woolsey Biggart. “We are excited by the opportunity for our scientists to test new ideas for integrated and commercially viable carbon-reduction technologies.”

About UC Davis

UC Davis has long served as a proving ground for innovations in environmental sustainability. Sierra Magazine named UC Davis the nation’s #1 Cool School in its 2012 ranking of the country’s greenest colleges. In 2011, UC Davis West Village opened its doors and is on track to become the nation’s largest planned zero net energy community. Four UC Davis building complexes are certified LEED Platinum, the highest ranking awarded by the U.S. Green Building Council. Aggressive recycling, composting and reuse efforts prevent more than 63 percent of campus waste from entering landfills annually. Through its Climate Action Plan, the campus has reduced greenhouse gas emissions below year 2000 levels and expects to reach year 1990 levels by 2020. The campus also boasts more than 42 miles of bike paths and more than 20,000 bike racks, earning it a gold award from the League of American Bicyclists.

About Honda Environmental Leadership

Honda is a leader in the development of leading-edge technologies to improve fuel efficiency and reduce CO₂ emissions. Honda has led the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) rankings of overall vehicle environmental performance since 2000, and a Honda vehicle has topped the list of America's greenest vehicles from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) for eleven out of the past twelve years. The company leads all automakers with twelve LEED-certified "Green Buildings" in North America. Ten of its 14 North American manufacturing facilities are zero-waste to landfill.

In 2006, Honda became the first automaker to announce voluntary CO₂ emissions reduction targets for its global fleet of automobile, power sports and power equipment products and its global network of manufacturing plants. Today, the company is striving for even greater reductions in CO₂ emissions that contribute to global climate change, while also working to minimize waste, water use and the total environmental footprint of its operations worldwide.

Honda established operations in America in 1959, and now employs more than 26,000 associates in its U.S. sales, R &D and manufacturing operations with a capital investment of more than $12.5 billion. Over 90% of Honda vehicles sold in the U.S. are produced in North America, using globally and locally sourced parts.

Media Contact Information:

Marcos Frommer (American Honda Motor Co., Inc.): 310-783-7837, marcos_frommer@ahm.honda.com

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