The economists at the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Construction Forecast Conference generally believed that the battered housing market will start to make a comeback in 2009. But in their assessment of the economy, they raised the specter of the dreaded “R” word - recession. However, the speakers did point out the positives in the current turmoil.

According to a recently released survey by Pew Research Center, women are the key household decision-makers. When it comes to deciding on major home purchases, managing household finances, and other decisions, women are very much involved and often are in charge.

This year as the price of oil and gasoline sharply rose, the impact of high energy prices weighed heavily on the United States economy. To find out how readers feel about the energy issue, an informal online survey was conducted on The NEWS Website, keying on oil drilling and renewable energy.

As an HVAC contractor, the most important brand that you sell is not the product brand. It is your company name. If customers do not know about your company, they will not buy from you. It’s as simple as that. You are the company that sells and installs the product. You have to build brand awareness for your company.

Escalating energy prices - especially gasoline prices - have led many Americans to reject the status quo and call for change. So it’s not surprising that, in addressing energy issues at the 19th annual Energy Efficiency Forum, sponsored by the United States Energy Association and Johnson Controls, the need for change was a recurring theme among the speakers.

With a lineup of speakers made up of two senators and three representatives as well as various government and business leaders, the Great Energy Efficiency Day event, put on by the Alliance to Save Energy (ASE) at the Dirksen Senate Office Building, showed that energy issues are top of mind on Capitol Hill and in the business world.

After rising to an exhilarating high, the housing market now remains on a downward slope. Despite earlier forecasts that it would reach bottom this year, it appears the bottom is still months down the road. At the latest National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Construction Forecast Conference, economists presented generally gloomy outlooks on housing with some occasional glimmers of hope.

The Energy Star program provides value not only in helping improve the efficiency of buildings, but in also seeing at what level a building is relative to its peers. In a session at the World Energy Engineering Congress (WEEC), attendees received an Energy Star overview and how to implement benchmarking to set the bar for improvement.

The New Technologies session at the World Energy Engineering Congress (WEEC) provided a variety of ways to find information on emerging technologies as well as an overview of some promising new technologies.

With the Georgia World Congress Center, site of the World Energy Engineering Congress (WEEC), situated next to Centennial Olympic Park, where the 1996 Summer Olympics were held, it’s only natural that the conference’s HVAC session would show attendees how to go for the gold.