Buildings & Industry Pillar

Energy-efficient smart electric meters in a row. 3D illustration.

Energy powers America's buildings and industry. Keeping the lights on and businesses runningβ€”affordably and reliablyβ€”makes our lives and work possible and our economy booming. Nearly every American building is plugged into the power grid and into a complex energy system that is shouldering ever-increasing loads and answering to a quickly changing landscape. Energy holds promise for reinvigorating America's manufacturing industry, both domestically and globally, and for creating jobs.

EERE's Buildings and Industry Office (B&I) leads investments that accelerate the energy affordability and resilience of America's buildings and industries, and that strengthen and secure America's economic competitiveness, industrial base and domestic supply chains.

B&I delivers on these priorities with three technology offices as well as DOE's flagship partnership program. Collectively, the office invests $800 million annually in research and development (R&D) across U.S. national laboratories, universities and private companies.

B&I Technology Offices and Partnership Program

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Industrial Technologies Office 

  • Invests in technologies that ensure the global competitiveness of the U.S. industrial base. 
  • Advances technologies for critical sectors for supply chains and U.S. competitiveness, such as chemicals, iron and steel, cement and concrete, and food and beverage production. These sectors comprise approximately one-third of total U.S. energy demand. 
  • Helps de-risk the development of cross-cutting industrial technologies that can unlock energy and cost savings across many sectors. 
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Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office 

  • Invests in materials and manufacturing innovations for the development of a secure and resilient American energy supply chain.   
  • Advances cross-cutting innovations in materials and manufacturing for domestic production of future energy system and end-use applications. 
  • Fosters a strong domestic manufacturing workforce through entrepreneurial, education and workforce development initiatives. 

Building Technologies Office

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  • Advances research and development for new construction and retrofit technologies that increase the affordability, resilience, and safety of American homes and buildings​.
  • Accelerates building technologies (cold climate heat pumps, high efficiency rooftop units) that save energy costs for families and businesses and strengthen the global competitiveness of American businesses​.
  • Enable the right-sizing of cost-effective energy infrastructure investments through high-performing, energy efficient, and demand-flexible buildings​.

Better Buildings Initiative 

  • Partners with leaders across the U.S. economy to spur innovation and drive cost-effective upgrades in commercial buildings, homes, and industrial plants.  
  • Supports partners in achieving ambitious portfolio-wide goals and shares best practices to advance the nation’s competitiveness.