Commercialisation strategies for net zero-energy-cost housing in Japan

Abstract

Today, Japanese housing manufacturers compete to produce net zero-energy-cost houses that are usually equipped with some renewable energy technologies-e.g. a solar photovoltaic electric power generating system, a CO2 refrigerant heat-pump water heater and a combined heat and power system. Interestingly, the manufacturers tend to install these costly renewable technologies as standard equipment rather than options. To initiate and maintenance the sales of their environmentally-friendly houses, the manufacturers bring into effect their quality-oriented production and user-oriented communication approaches. The manufacturers' way to commercialise their industrialised housing to some extent refl..