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Natural gas powered City Center opens in Vegas
The MGM Mirage City Center Project opened last month and it is the talk of the town. Attendees to the 2010 International Builders Show are flocking to see it.
City Center is a dazzling array of towering hotels, condos, restaurants and high end shops and boutiques occupying 67 acres with more than a quarter mile of frontage on the Las Vegas Strip. With more than 18 million square feet of development, it is truly a city within a city.
One million tons of concrete were used in its construction, enough to build a four foot wide sidewalk from Las Vegas to New York City and back. The steel that was used would be enough to build ten Eiffel Towers and the fiber optic cable in the project could circle the equator four times! Clearing the site produced more than 300,000 tons of construction debris but 93 percent of it was recycled.
This, plus the fact that natural gas is used throughout the project has enabled City Center to receive LEED Gold certification for energy and environmental excellence.
A ten megawatt natural gas fueled cogeneration plant provides much of the electricity. Every residential condo unit features a top of the line gas cooktop and all of the hotels and restaurants have huge kitchens filled with natural gas cooking equipment. I think the only chef in the project that does not cook with gas is the guy that makes sushi.
The MGM Mirage City Center is an outstanding example of how the direct use on natural gas provides builders with a pathway toward high efficiency, high performance and a low carbon footprint.
Natural Gas and The New American Home
Every year one of the highlights of the International Builders Show (IBS) is The New American Home (TNAH), the official showcase home of the convention. The 2009 TNAH, which features the revolutionary AISIN Gas Heat Pump, has been such a huge success that it remains open for tours for an 18 month period.
The 2010 TNAH, however, has met a different fate and is, in some ways, the poster child for the state of the new home construction industry. The home was about 75 percent complete in November when the builder ran out of money and could not, even after a concerted effort by the NAHB and allies throughout the country, obtain financing to finish the job. The bank foreclosed on the home on December 28 and the builder has gone out of business.
To its credit, the NAHB made lemonade out of this lemon by producing a very professional “virtual tour” of TNAH, and builders are lining up to view it. Numerous natural gas appliances are in the home, including the “Phoenix” solar/gas water heater from Heat Transfer Products, Inc. That product is in the AGA exhibit booth as is the Ecopower Microcogeneration (CHP) appliance sized for residential and small commercial applications. This unit, made by Marathon Engine Systems and fueled by natural gas, is running full time in our booth, producing all the electricity for the entire exhibit. We are not connected to the electric grid!
Despite the current condition of the housing industry, builder traffic in our exhibit has been excellent and there appears to be a lot of interest in the natural gas technology we are showcasing. The Natural Gas Home is truly a Green Home.
Natural Gas at The International Builders Show
The 2010 National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB) International Builders Show (IBS) gets underway today in Las Vegas, Nevada. The expected attendance is around 55,000, nearly half the number that attended the IBS when it was held in Orlando just a few years ago.
This is a reflection of the state of the U.S. housing industry, to be sure, but the good news is that the fall off is almost entirely in the exhibitor category. The number of exhibitors, and the people they have sent to the Show, is off by some 40 percent, but the number of builders has actually held steady from last year.
Still, with over a half million square feet of exhibits, the annual IBS remains the largest light construction trade show in the world. A lot of corporations and organizations have been loyal exhibitors, including the American Gas Association, and the NAHB is expressing its gratitude.
At the Executive Board Meeting held on Saturday, a dozen exhibitors were recognized by name as they have exhibited continuously for over 50 years. The AGA was recognized for its record of 63 straight years, behind only the Kohler Company, the Masonite Corporation and GE, which have each exhibited for 65 years. And these long time exhibitors will be again be recognized on Thursday at the full NAHB Board of Directors Meeting attended by more than 5,000 people.
A large variety of gas equipment and appliances are on display at the IBS, not only in the AGA exhibit but also throughout the convention center in the exhibits of manufacturers of gas products. They point out the tremendous economic, environmental and performance benefits of using natural gas directly in the home. And not just in the home. The giant City Center Complex, a city within a city, just opened in Las Vegas and it is one heck of a natural gas direct use success story! It truly is the talk of the town and I will explain why in my next post.
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- Natural gas, how about zero carbon emissions
- The real natural gas message in a climate crunch
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- Natural Gas Market Indicators
- Coming Down To Earth on a ‘Clean Energy’ Standard?
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- Coming Down To Earth, A Winning Strategy For Renewables
