2014 WaterSense'
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Award Winners Build
Strong Communities
WaterSense and its partners have helped Americans save 757 billion gallons of
water and $14.2 billion in water and energy bills since the program's
inception in 2006. In 2013 alone, WaterSense labeled products saved 271
billion gallons of water. By working together, WaterSense partners continue
to build stronger, more water-efficient communities across the country.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is pleased to recognize the strengths of one Sustained
Excellence Award winner, nine WaterSense Partners of the Year, and five Excellence Award winners that
helped to advance and promote WaterSense and water efficiency throughout 2013.
KOHLER
SUSTAINED EXCELLENCE
Kohler Co.
Kohler, WaterSense's first two-time Sustained Excellence Award winner,
continued to implement new, innovative technologies and promote
WaterSense labeled products in 2013. The company developed a dual-flush
trip lever for tank-type toilets that makes selecting a dual-flush toilet easier for consumers accustomed to
traditional flush levers and increases accessibility for those with dexterity challenges. Kohler collaborated with
multiple WaterSense partners to promote the performance of WaterSense labeled products during the Trust the
Flush mobile marketing campaign. The cross-country bus tour showcased WaterSense labeled toilets at more
than 185 events. In addition, Kohler's marketing and social media presence via Facebook, Twitter, YouTube,
and Pinterest contributed to millions of WaterSense labeled toilets, bathroom faucets, and showerheads being
sold in 2013.
Kohler demonstrated its commitment to developing water
efficiency and sustainable building expertise. Within the
company, staff collaborated with the U.S. Green Building
Council to train and certify 280 individuals as LEED®
Green Associates. In addition, the company provided
WaterSense labeled products for the Green Builder
Media's VISION House® in INNOVENTIONS at Walt
Disney World's Epcot Center in Orlando, Florida, which
was visited by more than 200,000 people. Kohler also
donated WaterSense labeled products and design
support to the California Institute of Technology's entry
for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation's Reinvent the Kohler Co.'s 2013 Trust the Flush bus tour promoted
Toilet Challenge that funds projects addressing health WaterSense labeled toilets to consumers at nearly 200
and sanitation issues in developing countries. events across the country.
PHONE (866) WTR-SENS (987-7367) WEBSITE www.epa.gov/watersense EMAIL watersense@epa.gov
&ER&
EPA-832-F-14-010
October 2014
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2014 WaterSense® Award Winners Build Strong Communities
PROMOTIONAL PARTNERS OF THE YEAR
Cobb County Water System
In Georgia, Cobb County Water System's comprehensive approach to
promoting WaterSense in 2013 earned the utility its third WaterSense
Promotional Partner of the Year Award and translated into measurable
water savings. Despite adding approximately 100,000 Atlanta
metropolitan area customers in 2013, Cobb County's annual average
daily water use decreased by 10 million gallons per day compared to
2010. A portion of these savings can be attributed to Cobb County's
successful toilet rebate program, which rebated more than 2,500
WaterSense labeled models in 2013 alone.
"When we train a professional,
we have magnified our
message. They then carry that
information forward and find a
way to embrace efficiency as a
best business practice instead
of a roadblock."
Kathy Nguyen
Senior Project Manager
Cobb County Water System
The utility used a variety of venues to communicate water efficiency messages to the community. The new
Water $aver quarterly e-newsletter and social media presence in 2013 helped promote WaterSense, its
campaigns, and popular WaterSense hashtags, such as #showerbetter and #fixaleak. The utility leveraged
waterSmart, its joint communications program with Cobb County-Marietta Water Authority, to reach an even
larger audience with WaterSense messaging. In 2013, the program transitioned October from waterSmart
Month to Shower Better Month to promote the water- and
energy-saving benefits of WaterSense labeled showerheads.
Cobb County celebrated Fix a Leak Week 2013 by
partnering with other regional water providers and
WaterSense partners on the first annual Water Drop Dash 5-
kilometer (5K) race and Water Festival. Staff distributed
water efficiency kits containing WaterSense labeled
showerheads and faucet aerators to nearly 400 runners and
their families. Inspired by WaterSense's Sprinkler Spruce-Up
campaign, Cobb County also worked with fellow WaterSense
partners Ewing Irrigation and Rainbird to educate landscape
professionals through hands-on trainings with an operable
display of WaterSense labeled irrigation controllers.
Nguyen (right) celebrates Fix a Leak Week 2013 at the
Water Drop Dash 5K with the City of Gainesville,
Georgia's Conservation Crusader mascot (left).
Colorado Springs Utilities
Colorado Springs Utilities (CSU) in Colorado, a two-time WaterSense
Promotional Partner of the Year, helped local home and business
owners significantly reduce their water use in 2013 through education
and WaterSense labeled product rebates. By meeting customers
where they seek water efficiency information, the utility supplied 7,268
WaterSense labeled product rebates and retrofits and saved an
estimated 80 million gallons of water in 2013.
Colorado Springs
It's how we're all connected
CSU's Conservation and Environmental Center houses the WaterSense Showcase and serves as a centerpiece
for its outreach efforts hosting more than 20,000 visitors per year. The showcase displays fully functioning
WaterSense labeled products; a water jug savings comparison between labeled products and less efficient
fixtures; and facts about the water, energy, and cost savings achieved with WaterSense labeled products. The
center promoted Fix a Leak Week by hosting an open house featuring a showerhead "free-bate" program,
experts on water efficiency, and kids' activities.
CSU ramped up its WaterSense labeled new homes promotion in 2013. Its WaterSense New Homes Builder
Incentive Program provided local builders a $750 rebate per labeled home. To recruit participants, staff met
individually with builders to introduce the rebate program; connect them with licensed certification providers; and
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2014 WaterSense® Award Winners Build Strong Communities
explain how builders, buyers, and sellers can find WaterSense labeled
products using CSU's Multiple Listings Service Green Features
Addendum. The utility also collaborated with the Colorado Springs Home
Builders Association's 2013 Parade of Homes to showcase models using
WaterSense labeled products.
MANUFACTURER PARTNERS OF THE YEAR
'We are so glad to utilize the
WaterSense program. It
contributes to the success of
our conservation goals, helping
everyone save water, energy,
and money—a true example of
Delta Faucet Company (Large Manufacturer)
Frank Kinder
Senior Conservation Specialist
Colorado Springs Utilities
A three-time Manufacturer Partner of the Year, Delta Faucet Company
demonstrated its commitment to WaterSense through online and in-
person promotions. The Delta brand online faucet video gallery featured
16 clips with WaterSense labeled faucet models, and its Brizio brand website had five videos highlighting
WaterSense labeled products.
D E LTA
FAUCET COMPANY
The company promoted WaterSense labeled products through its continued
primary sponsorship of HGTV's Dream Home Sweepstakes in 2013. In
addition, the company's Brizio brand continued its water-efficient support
for the St. Jude Dream Home by donating WaterSense labeled products to
28 homes that have received more than 80,000 visitors.
In 2013, Delta continued to work with the Hospitality Sustainability Purchasing Consortium to ensure that the
hospitality industry's sustainability performance standards aligned with WaterSense specifications for applicable
product categories. The consortium's Web-based purchasing database researches, measures, and reports on
the corporate social responsibility, environmental, and product sustainability performance of suppliers. Delta
expanded this effort to other multifamily residential sectors in 2013 by promoting the benefits of WaterSense
labeled bathroom faucets and showerheads to builders and developers.
HydroPoint Data Systems (Small Manufacturer)
A
HydroPoint®data systems,;™.
The proven leader in Smart Water ManagementSM
HydroPoint Data Systems showcased its product innovation in
2013. Its WaterSense labeled irrigation controllers were enhanced
with computer-generated climate models that deliver daily local
weather data that better calculate and deliver the right amount of water to landscapes. The company's efforts
led to big savings — with more than 25,000 users of WaterSense labeled Hydropoint controllers saving 20 billion
gallons of water in 2013 alone.
In 2013, the manufacturer released a Water Budget Manager tool that offers customers simple real-time
visibility, tracking and reporting of a site's water consumption and water bill dollars. HydroPoint also introduced a
tool to give landscape irrigation professionals the ability to identify leaks or line breaks before they worsen.
"For us, this award represents a real
turning point in the market where
outdoor irrigation is being recognized
as a major conservation opportunity.
We're living in a new era of scarcity
where water waste cannot be ignored
any longer."
Christopher Spain, President & CEO
HydroPoint Data Systems, Inc.
Throughout 2013, HydroPoint continuously collaborated with local
water agencies and municipalities to establish and promote more
than 200 rebate programs through its website. The manufacturer
strongly encouraged these agencies to only rebate WaterSense
labeled irrigation controllers. The company highlighted
WaterSense and labeled irrigation controllers in more than 40
marketing campaigns and 10 press releases. HydroPoint also
promoted outdoor water efficiency and WaterSense at several
conferences and trade events in 2013, including WaterSmart
Innovations, the International Council of Shopping Centers, and
the National Apartment Association's Green conference.
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2014 WaterSense® Award Winners Build Strong Communities
RETAILER PARTNER OF THE YEAR
The Home Depot
For the second consecutive year, The Home Depot earned the Retailer Partner of the
Year award for its dedication to promoting WaterSense to both its employees and
customers nationwide. The Home Depot worked extensively with water utilities across
the country to support rebate programs for WaterSense labeled toilets, showerheads,
and irrigation controllers. As a result, it helped consumers achieve more than $36
million in product markdowns—a 9 percent increase compared to 2012. In 2013, The
Home Depot's online and in-store WaterSense labeled product inventory increased by
36 percent, including products sold through YourOtherWarehouse.com, an online
plumbing supply warehouse featuring more than 2,500 WaterSense labeled models.
The Home Depot collaborated with other WaterSense partners to promote Fix a Leak Week and other
campaigns. The company joined forces with the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District, a fellow
WaterSense partner, to co-sponsor the Atlanta utility's inaugural Water Drop Dash 5K promoting Fix a Leak
Week. The Home Depot adapted WaterSense's "Dreaming of a Better Bathroom" messaging to launch two
independent campaigns encouraging customers to build a "better" bathroom with WaterSense labeled products.
Campaign workshops attracted nearly 160,000 attendees. Staff also promoted the cost-saving benefits of
WaterSense labeled products at the 2013 Earth Day Celebration in New York City with a new "money pit"
display.
To keep up with smartphone technology, The Home Depot launched a Pro Mobile Web application. The app
allows thousands of professional plumbers and contractors to easily educate their customers about WaterSense
labeled products directly from their job sites.
BUILDER PARTNER OF THE YEAR
KB Home
KB Home's fourth consecutive WaterSense Builder Partner of the Year award
demonstrates its tried-and-true commitment to building water-efficient communities
across the country. In 2013, KB Home constructed 60 KB Homes that met the
WaterSense new home specification at communities in California and Texas.
In 2013, the builder brought San Marcos, California, its first WaterSense labeled new
home using its ZeroHouse 2.0 model. The house is designed to achieve net-zero
energy use and the highest levels of resource efficiency with the help of WaterSense
labeled products. To further showcase its water efficiency innovation, KB Home
KB Home's San Marcos property features
WaterSense labeled products and drought-
tolerant plants.
introduced the Double ZeroHouse 2.0 concept. When fully
constructed in 2014, a Double ZeroHouse 2.0 home will include pre-
plumbing for greywater recycling systems, water- and energy-
efficient dishwashers, and a tankless water heater.
To support the construction of new water-efficient communities, KB
Home implemented extensive training initiatives in 2013 to educate
its employees about WaterSense labeled products and new homes.
Various teams of sales counselors and inspectors learned how to
communicate the benefits of WaterSense labeled products to home
buyers. Landscape contractors and irrigation installers who work on
KB Homes are also required to review and implement water-efficient
practices from KB Home's landscaping guide.
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2014 WaterSense® Award Winners Build Strong Communities
LICENSED CERTIFICATION PROVIDER PARTNER OF THE YEAR
Energy Inspectors Corporation
Two-time WaterSense Licensed Certification Provider Partner of the Year Energy
Inspectors Corporation demonstrated strong collaboration with WaterSense builder
partners throughout 2013. The company teamed up with 2014 WaterSense Builder
Partner of the Year KB Home to educate homeowners about the benefits of water
efficiency and expand the market for WaterSense labeled new homes. Energy
Inspectors inspected more than 50 WaterSense labeled new homes built by KB
Home in 2013, and the two solidified plans to construct and inspect 541 additional
ENERGY INSPECTORS® WaterSense labeled models in 2014.
To ensure its inspectors are up to the challenge, Energy Inspectors continued its hands-on training process in
2013. Trainees must perform a full inspection on a model home to ensure that it meets the WaterSense criteria
indoors and out. The company also began developing a training video for new and existing inspectors to
maintain their WaterSense knowledge.
PROFESSIONAL CERTIFYING ORGANIZATION PARTNERS OF THE YEAR
Irrigation Association
Two-time WaterSense Professional Certifying Organization Partner of the Year the Irrigation Association (IA)
showed no signs of slowing down in 2013. Its WaterSense specification development support, campaign
promotions, and certified irrigation professional recruitment efforts exemplified its dedication to the WaterSense
mission. The organization supported changes to the WaterSense professional certifying organization program
and educated their professionals certified by its WaterSense labeled programs about the changes. IA also
submitted testing protocols to WaterSense for weather-based irrigation controllers and soil moisture-based
control technologies to assist with the product categories' specification development processes.
To promote the benefits of working with certified irrigation professionals, IA
rolled out its Hire Certified campaign. It encouraged consumers to look for
certified professionals to save water outdoors. In addition, staff cross-
promoted Sprinkler Spruce-Up with its Smart Irrigation Month campaign to
more than 14,000 contacts through a mass email effort. The organization's
IA Times monthly e-newsletter also promoted Sprinkler Spruce-Up to
members.
Irrigation
** A c c n r i ATinM
ASSOCIATION7
Smart practices.
Sustainable solutions.
Staff also engaged irrigation professionals and contractors about WaterSense and the benefits of professional
certification through "Point of Connection" sessions held in conjunction with the annual Irrigation Show. In
addition, "Turf Talk," an interactive peer-to-peer experience, focused on sales strategies, marketing, and water-
efficient landscapes while providing irrigation professionals with new ideas.
Sonoma-Marin Saving Water Partnership
c
SAVING WATER
The Sonoma-Marin Saving Water Partnership (SMSWP) in California went above
and beyond in 2013 to promote the value of professional certification programs and
importance of selecting the right professional to achieve a water-efficient landscape.
The organization promoted the WaterSense labeled Qualified Water Efficient
Landscaper (QWEL) program to interested regional stakeholders and encouraged
them to become professional certifying organization partners with WaterSense. In
2013, QWEL was adopted by one new certifying organization, and nearly 200
irrigation professionals were certified through all 10 QWEL programs.
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2014 WaterSense® Award Winners Build Strong Communities
In 2013, SMSWP expanded its outreach of the QWEL program. The QWEL website, www.qwel.net, was
completely redesigned to prominently feature the WaterSense label and make finding a certified irrigation
professional easier. In addition, all QWEL advertising featured the WaterSense label and aimed to encourage
homeowners to hire QWEL graduates and to increase awareness of the importance of water efficiency. SMSWP
also offered a Spanish-language QWEL program. It was promoted at 24 community events and through live and
prerecorded radio interviews aired on three local radio stations.
In 2013, SMSWP's print, radio, email, and online outreach focused on the 20-Gallon Challenge, encouraging
Californians to reduce their water use by 20 gallons per person per day. Outreach efforts targeted both
consumers and landscape professionals.
EXCELLENCE IN STRATEGIC COLLABORATION
DENVER WATER
Denver Water
In 2013, Denver Water in Colorado led the charge in supporting
state legislation designed to achieve significant water savings
through the use of WaterSense labeled products. Denver Water
discussed the concept of this legislation across the state and
provided outreach and education on the WaterSense program to explain why designating WaterSense in the
legislation was important. The language in the Colorado legislation is the first among statewide water legislation
to explicitly require WaterSense labeled fixtures at the point of sale.
Denver Water relied on partners to help its rebate and incentive programs to be successful. In 2013, Denver
Water staff visited more than 60 retail stores two times throughout the year to inform and/or remind store
associates about Denver Water's rebate program for WaterSense labeled toilets.
EXCELLENCE IN PROMOTING WATERSENSE LABELED PRODUCTS
Puget Sound Energy
PUCET
SOUND
ENERGY
Puget Sound Energy in Bellevue, Washington, is one of the first electric and
natural gas service utilities to partner with WaterSense and the first to win a
WaterSense award. The company made a big splash in 2013 by leveraging
a wide range of WaterSense promotional materials to educate consumers
about the water and energy connection. The utility promoted WaterSense
labeled showerheads through in-store incentives, an online store, leave-
behind kits, pop-up retailers, direct mail, and email marketing.
Puget Sound Energy developed its own online store called Shop PSE that offered discounts on WaterSense
labeled showerheads for Puget Sound Energy customers. Models were marketed through direct mail, email, and
YouTube and led to the sale of 6,221 WaterSense labeled showerheads in 2013.
The utility also worked with local retailers to offer more than 23,000 instant rebates to customers who purchased
WaterSense labeled showerheads. In addition, Puget Sound Energy provided more than 3,000 free energy
efficiency kits equipped with a WaterSense labeled showerhead in tandem with its refrigerator and clothes
washer replacement program.
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2014 WaterSense® Award Winners Build Strong Communities
EXCELLENCE IN OUTREACH AND EDUCATION
Athens-Clarke County Public Utilities Department
In 2013, the Athens-Clarke County Public Utilities Department in Georgia welcomed
Little Lily, a stuffed-frog version of the utility's water efficiency mascot Lily Anne
Phibian, who "hops" between local students' homes to educate students and their
families about water efficiency. Her water-saving adventures were documented and
shared in the classroom and on social media, where the utility expanded its online
repertoire to Pinterest.
Public Utilities
water, wastewater. conservation.
To promote Sprinkler Spruce-Up, Athens-Clarke leveraged the University of Georgia's irrigation system
upgrade—estimated to save more than 2.5 million gallons of water per year—as a way to remind customers to
inspect, connect, direct, and select.
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission
San Francisco
Water
Power
Sewer
Services of the San Francisco
Public Utilities Commission
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) in California regularly
educated a wide audience about WaterSense in 2013. In honor of Fix a Leak
Week, SFPUC spread the "check, twist, replace" message to its customer base
through broadcast and print platforms. Multilingual television Public Service
Announcements (PSAs) in English, Spanish, and Chinese were produced in order
to raise awareness of water-wasting plumbing leaks and simple steps to fix them.
The PSAs earned more than 300,000 impressions and reached 67.8 percent of
San Francisco households an average of 2.7 times each in one week.
In 2013, SFPUC also reached an estimated 2,500 students through more than 30 local classroom presentations
and school assemblies. It encouraged students, teachers, and their families to replace older, inefficient
showerheads and toilets with WaterSense labeled models and apply for SFPUC's rebates.
ATEXAS A&M
/YGRILIFE
RESEARCH I EXTENSION
Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Dallas
In 2013, the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Dallas
transformed an existing 1,500-square-foot, on-campus home to demonstrate
the indoor and outdoor water-saving benefits of WaterSense labeled new
homes. Texas AgriLife, in partnership with EPA Region 6 and WaterSense
partner the City of Dallas Water Utilities, hosted a grand opening for more than 1,000 visitors during Fix a Leak
Week in March 2013. It also took education on the road in 2013 with an 8-foot-by-12-foot mobile WaterSense
home featuring an indoor working bathroom equipped with a WaterSense labeled toilet, faucet, and showerhead
so communities across Texas could experience the products' proven performance firsthand.
In July 2013, Texas AgriLife conducted weekly water-efficient irrigation classes, reaching 5,830 individuals with
161 classes in 2013. Staff also participated in 22 regional outreach events attended by more than 2.5 million
people; hosted 26 professional trainings for landscape and irrigation professionals; and conducted 18 youth
water camps reaching 3,400 youth in the region.
Learn More
WaterSense congratulates all of the 2014 Sustained Excellence Award winners, Partners of the Year, and
Excellence Award winners. For more information about the WaterSense Partner of the Year awards and to
learn about the benefits of partnership, visit www.epa.gov/watersense.
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