Deanna Harms
Greteman Group
Vice President, Public Relations
316.263.1004, ext. 111
dharms@gretemangroup.com
Ralph Evans
ECO-Block, LLC
Regional Manager
813.713.4674
r.evans@eco-block.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Arthur Rutenberg franchisee creating a "Renaissance" with
ECO-Block
Ft. Meyers, Fla. - For the first time, Floridians can choose a new
Arthur Rutenberg home made of ECO-Block insulating concrete forms (ICF),
an energy-efficient, environmentally friendly way to build.
Lyons Housing Corporation, an Arthur Rutenberg franchisee, recently
debuted a home built with ECO-Block at Villagio, a neighborhood within
the new Renaissance subdivision near Ft. Meyers in Lee County.
"This marks the first time Arthur Rutenberg Homes' copyrighted
designs have been adapted to our product," says Ralph Evans, regional
manager for ECO-Block. Lyons chose to offer ECO-Block as an upgrade
based on consumer demand for earth-friendly living environments.
Available only in Florida but known industry-wide for its popular copyrighted
designs, Arthur Rutenberg Homes and its network of carefully selected
franchisees make it a dominant player among developers statewide.
"Of course, we hope Lyons starts a trend among Arthur Rutenberg
builders," Evans says. "These are beautiful, quality homes
and buyers will be impressed with the added value ECO-Block brings."
Planned by Worthington Communities, Renaissance already offers its homeowners
a unique, natural landscape that includes extensive use of native plants
and more than 80 acres of preserve and wetlands. With high-end homes
bordering the fairways of an Arthur Hills-designed championship golf
course, the community showcases some of the areas most respected builders.
As the exclusive builder for Villagio, Lyons Housing Corporation offers
executive-level detached villas to its homebuyers. Lyons sees more than
one benefit that might be gained by using ECO-Block.
"The majority of new homes in Florida are made of concrete using
traditional construction methods," says Tim Rose, president of
Lyons Housing Corporation. "This means skilled masons can be hard
to find."
"But ECO-Block's easy-to-use product design makes building concrete
homes both simpler and faster, which broadens the pool of workers who
can build with concrete." he says. "When we considered this
along with its numerous environmental advantages, the decision to use
ECO-Block was an easy one."
An ECO-Block building presents long-term energy savings for its owners,
with utility bills slashed by as much as 50 percent. While the cost
of using concrete is competitive with wood, experienced crews also report
that building with ICFs can take less time. The easy-to-use process
eliminates several steps - such as sheathing and insulating the exterior
walls - that are necessary with wood-frame construction.
Made of expanded polystyrene (EPS), ICFs stack and lock into place much
like LEGOs. Once in place, concrete fills the forms to create strong
walls while providing excellent built-in insulation. In addition to
being earth-friendly, ECO-Block increases protection during extreme
weather with a resistance of up to 200 mph winds. Building owners also
appreciate its exceptional insulating values, which make the structures
up to eight-times quieter.
ECO-Block LLC is one of the world's most innovative and experienced
providers of insulating concrete form (ICF) technology. The Florida-based
company manufactures and supplies the most versatile, simple to install
and technologically advanced ICF systems available for both commercial
and residential construction. ECO-Block requires less training time
and installs faster than any other ICF system. Use of ECO-Block's ICF
technology creates super-insulated, monolithic concrete walls that save
energy, keep noise out and improve air quality. Building owners have
reported utility savings of up to 50% a month. Greater fire, wind and
weather resistance also help make ECO-Block homes more durable and secure
than those using conventional construction methods. The use of renewable
resources in ECO-Block ICF systems reduces reliance on wood products,
helping protect our threatened forests. ICF technology is rapidly integrating
into mainstream commercial and residential construction. In 1998, 20,000
new homes benefited from ICFs. Industry projections for 2003 estimate
that approximately 100,000 homes will take advantage of ICF technology.