VALLEY FORGE, Pa. – CertainTeed Corporation is proud to help reduce buildings’ environmental footprints by manufacturing sustainable, energy-saving products and partnering with building professionals committed to doing the same. One partner, Hybrid Homes, was recently granted the LEED(R) for Homes Platinum certification for a project in Onekama, Mich., that features CertainTeed ColorMax(TM) FiberCement Siding.

LEED for Homes is a national initiative designed to promote the transformation of the mainstream homebuilding industry toward more sustainable practices. A platinum status is the highest rating a LEED for Homes project can achieve.

“We use a number of CertainTeed products, including WeatherBoards(TM) and ColorMax(TM) FiberCement Siding. I love both of these products and so do our customers,” says Adam Bearup, President of Hybrid Homes, who is also known as ‘The Hybrid Home Guy’. “We have a wide variety of home styles that we build, so I really like all of CertainTeed’s siding products.”

The home will be open for public tours June 27 to 29 during the Third Annual Michigan Energy Fair. The Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association also honored the project with the 2007 Exemplary Project Award for demonstrating the most innovative and practical use of renewable energy technologies and methods. “Every prospect we talk to wants renewable energy in their home and the greenest home possible for their budget. They care very much about leaving the planet in better shape than they found it and want future generations to be healthy and safe in the world they leave behind. For them, it’s about legacy,” adds Bearup.

CertainTeed FiberCement Siding is used by Hybrid Homes because it is an environmentally friendly product. CertainTeed’s WeatherBoards and ColorMax FiberCement Siding are made from a combination of recycled fly ash, Portland cement, wood fiber and specialty additives. The enhanced, patented formula of these CertainTeed products creates environmentally friendly, lower-density siding, with the most authentic-looking grains and textures of any fiber cement siding on the market.