NIST launches economic tools for homeowner durability decisions.NIST (National Institute of Standards & Technology, Washington, DC, www.nist.gov) The standards-defining agency of the U.S. government, formerly the National Bureau of Standards. It is one of three agencies that fall under the Technology Administration (www.technology. economists have developed a decision model that helps homeowners select the most cost-effective cost-effective, n the minimal expenditure of dollars, time, and other elements necessary to achieve the health care result deemed necessary and appropriate. level of durability du·ra·ble adj. 1. Capable of withstanding wear and tear or decay: a durable fabric. 2. . The model has been incorporated into a suite of Internet Internet Publicly accessible computer network connecting many smaller networks from around the world. It grew out of a U.S. Defense Department program called ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network), established in 1969 with connections between computers at the decision tools called National Economic Service-life Tools (NEST) that is available at www.PATHNet.org See .org. (networking) org - The top-level domain for organisations or individuals that don't fit any other top-level domain (national, com, edu, or gov). Though many have .org domains, it was never intended to be limited to non-profit organisations. RFC 1591. . The initial public release of NEST in September 2003 features the first two tools. NEST Builder and Durability Doctor. NEST Builder lets users specify the details of their house including its location, size, layout, and the materials they have for the major components of the external shell: roof, siding, windows, and garage doors. Durability Doctor allows users to compare different building materials Building materials used in the construction industry to create . These categories of materials and products are used by and construction project managers to specify the materials and methods used for . based on cost and durability. The tool lets users analyze and compare different views of their virtual house with materials based on three criteria: the greatest durability, the lowest installation cost, and the lowest monthly life-cycle cost. After studying these views, homeowners can customize their house with the materials they prefer. Tools planned for future releases of NEST will let users budget for future replacements of major housing elements, predict when major housing elements are likely to fail, and learn about the risk of significant natural hazards in their location. CONTACT: Laura Schultz, (301) 975-4918; laura. schultz@nist.gov. Inquiries about News Briefs, where no contact person is identified, should be referred to the Managing Editor, Journal of Research, National Institute of Standards, and Technology, Building 101. Room E215, Gaithersburg, MD 20899-2500; telephone: (301)975-3577. |
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