Alpen High Performance Products announced that it has has been selected for negotiation of $5.8 million in funding from the United States Department of Energy for the production of ultra-thin, triple- and quad-pane insulated glass units for windows. The status was given to Alpen as part of a larger DOE project that will grant $275 million to seven different companies to strengthen domestic supply chains and accelerate clean energy manufacturing.
"This selection validates our ongoing commitment to manufacturing high-performance windows and doors," says Alpen CEO Brad Begin. "It also speaks to the hard work of our employees. Our company has grown exponentially over the last few years because of moments like these. That has allowed Alpen to offer better opportunities and more upward mobility for our highly diverse workforce. We expect to create more than a hundred new jobs because of this selection."
More info on the funding
The announcement was made by the DOE at the inaugural meeting of the White House Council on Supply Chain Resilience and first reported on by the New York Times. The funding, once negotiated, is designed to help the company retrofit existing facilities in Louisville, Colorado, and Vandergrift, Pennsylvania, in order to produce IGUs. These retrofitted, automated facilities will be among the first of their kind in the U.S. and will help the company create more domestic jobs.
"President Biden's Investing in America agenda is driving the manufacturing boom while preserving the communities and workforce that have powered our nation for generations," U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm says in a statement. "With these historic investments, DOE will bring new economic opportunities and ensure these communities continue their key role in strengthening America's national and energy security."
The New York Times article claims the DOE program will distribute $275 million to seven projects in its initial round and expects its funding to be matched by about $600 million more in private investment. According to an Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains report, "the DOE award will increase Alpen's production tenfold, create 100 good-paying jobs through investment in automation, and significantly reduce customers' energy use and home heating and cooling costs."
What Alpen says
"Being selected for the DOE's negotiation of funding is the next piece in Alpen's ongoing mission to improve building performance," adds Begin. "Our windows were installed in some of the first high-performance homes and buildings in the U.S., and in thousands of residential and commercial projects since then. That list includes the Empire State Building and projects in some of the harshest climates in the world, including Antarctica and the Arctic Circle. Alpen will continue to lead the way. We will continue to champion ideas that make our world's buildings more comfortable, more efficient and more focused on climate issues."
