NYCHA is challenging designers to create an affordable heat pump for 24,000 apartment units

A creative answer to one of the most pervasive issues in American public housing is being sought by one of the largest civic authorities in the country as the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) has issued a challenge to design an affordable new all-electric heat pump for the 21st century. NYCHA has made design challenges a part of its program before. As Grist noted, the agency has previously issued similar challenges to older generations of industrial manufacturers, including a late-90s contest to design more energy-efficient refrigerators for its properties, which at the time, did not offer ample enough space for the appliances. A design from Maytag won the contest and was widely adopted by a number of other regional housing authorities in order to reduce energy costs.  Now, with the tragedy of this month’s devastating Bronx apartment fire in its recent purview, NYCHA is once again asking for help from the design community in solving a silent problem that has drawn increasing ...