Although the overall goals of CEE’s Super-Efficient Home Appliances (SEHA) Initiative remain essentially the same, the initiative is undergoing a major overhaul. Changes to the SEHA Initiative were approved by the CEE Board of Directors on Jan. 19.
The SEHA Initiative – which addresses residential clothes washers, dishwashers, refrigerators and room air conditioners – has two primary goals:
- Assist energy-efficiency program administrators in their efforts to increase the sale and market share of super-efficient appliances
- Complement the efforts of the ENERGY STAR program to increase sale and market share of ENERGY STAR-qualified appliances.
As part of the revision, CEE’s work with residential clothes washers – formerly a stand-alone initiative – will be incorporated into SEHA. Thus CEE’s activities with residential appliances will now be incorporated under one umbrella. This change helps prevent the duplication of efforts that could result from having two separate initiatives.
It also recognizes a shift in how efficiency program administrators view the appliance market. Although residential clothes washers continue to be important components of appliance programs, many CEE members consider clothes washers to be part of broader appliance efficiency efforts.
In addition, the initiative description is being revised while market details and other pertinent program considerations will be updated. This information has not been revised since 1998.
The SEHA strategy includes efforts to keep CEE’s residential appliance efforts as consistent as possible with the ENERGY STAR appliances program and to continue to evaluate residential appliance efficiency specifications.
These specifications, according to the initiative description, should enable efficiency program administrators to promote residential appliances cost-effectively and provide manufacturers with a platform to market their most efficient products of all sizes.
In the coming months and years, CEE expects to continue working with water-efficiency stakeholders, particularly in the clothes washer and dishwasher product areas. CEE will also explore potential work with appliance retailers, as well as other opportunities, like appliance recycling.
Participation requirements for the SEHA Initiative have not changed. As before, participants must support the ENERGY STAR appliances program while offering financial incentives and/or implementing an educational (or other type) promotional program for SEHA-qualified appliances.
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