Attachment 2
Year 2000 Progress Assessment of the PATH Program Recommendations
Recommendation 1. The PATH Program should be continued as a partnership among federal agencies and between the federal government and the private sector. The program should be reviewed continuously and updated to ensure that it evolves into an effective, efficient vehicle for the development and deployment of beneficial technologies.
Recommendation 2. PATH should undertake market research on builders’ and consumers’ perceptions of new technologies. Information on the successes and failures of new technologies and processes for introducing them into the housing industry should be incorporated into PATH’s technology development and deployment strategy. PATH strategies for disseminating information to its diverse audiences should be evaluated continuously and refined, as necessary.
Recommendation 3. More realistic and achievable goals should be developed commensurate with the size and mission of the PATH Program. Performance should be measured by criteria that are directly influenced by PATH initiatives, such as the rate of deployment of identified technologies and the level of investment by the housing industry in research and development.
Recommendation 4. PATH should develop credible baseline data so that the program’s performance toward achieving its goals can be objectively and independently assessed.
Recommendation 5. PATH should maintain its current management structure but should be careful to maintain PATH’s independence from ongoing programs and not to become a surrogate for these programs. PATH strategic and management plans should focus on opportunities for synergies and collaboration in ongoing programs and should make a clear distinction between coordination and initiatives that are directly controlled and funded through PATH. PATH management objectives should measure the value added to ongoing programs by PATH initiatives.
Recommendation 6. PATH should continue to provide seed money for research and development of new technologies, foster PATH name recognition to promote PATH goals and technologies, and educate and transfer information among its diverse stakeholders.
Recommendation 7. PATH should expand its use of demonstration projects to help develop market recognition for the PATH Program. Demonstration projects should be planned to measure the performance and value of new technologies and disseminate information to promote and facilitate the use of the demonstrated technologies.
Recommendation 8. The roadmapping process should include basic research, applied research, technology transfer, and process and planning issues in addition to materials and hardware. Participation in the roadmapping process should be expanded to include representatives of the financial, insurance, real estate, planning, and regulatory communities, as well as trade associations and consumer groups. The roadmaps should also identify opportunities for academic/business partnerships.
Recommendation 9. PATH should develop standard evaluation procedures, including the benchmarking of technologies that have been successfully integrated into the housing industry, to increase the usefulness of the Technology Inventory. The effectiveness of
