Calgary’s Dave Krasman of Jayman BUILT honoured as finalist in national Maverick Awards
Now in its second year, Built Green Canada’s Maverick Awards reward and profile leadership in sustainable building, across three exclusive categories—these saw entries from British Columbia through to Ontario. The most popular award was once again for Ambassador Maverick, which recognizes those on the ground, promoting and encouraging sustainable building. This year, one of the finalists was Dave Krasman, Director of Corporate Purchasing at Jayman BUILT: the founding member of Built Green. He was recognized for his sustainability stewardship through his work on various industry boards and leading efficiency initiatives at Jayman, alongside their comprehensive marketing focused on the benefits of sustainable building.
Dave has been with the company for 23 years, leading the corporate purchasing division since 2014. With a professional Supply Chain Management designation (SCMP) and a diploma in Architectural Technology (AT), Dave leverages his expertise to maximize Jayman’s buying power, with an eye to holistic sustainability.
Over the last decade, as his primary role, Dave spearheaded Jayman’s energy efficiency initiatives, including the introduction of Core Performance—energy-efficient inclusions now standard in every single-family home they build—which reduces greenhouse gas emissions and annual energy costs. Its standard energy-efficient features include 10 solar panels, a 96% high-efficiency two-stage furnace, an active heat recovery ventilator, a tankless hot water heater, foundation wrap, triple-pane R-6 windows, and a UV light air purification system. These features save homeowners up to $582 annually on energy costs and prevent 5.09 metric tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions from entering the atmosphere. Jayman’s homes are 37% more efficient than the Alberta Building Code.
Meanwhile, they promote water conservation with low-flow fixtures that save 84 million litres of water, and their building practices and materials have contributed to recycling 40,000 metric tonnes of waste material that would otherwise have gone to a landfill—important aspects of Built Green’s programs.
With solar energy generation close to his heart, Dave played a key role in adding a 10-panel solar system to every home and advancing Jayman’s Path to Net Zero and the introduction of Jayman’s first net zero certified home. As Jayman’s go-to expert for solar power, Dave takes great pride in their achievement as the builder of the largest residential solar system in Canada. With 700-800 homes built annually, each with 10 solar panels, since 2019, Jayman has installed over 10 megawatts of solar power across 4,000 homes in Alberta, saving over 16,501 metric tonnes of carbon emissions. If the panels were in one location as a solar farm, they would cover 40 acres—significantly contributing to Alberta’s electrical grid and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. In 2024 alone, this system reduced greenhouse gas emissions by over 5,776 tonnes, with numbers continuing to grow each year. To date, Jayman has built 34 Net Zero homes—and since Built Green Canada introduced their BUILT GREEN® Net Zero Energy+ rating, which addresses energy and other key areas of sustainable building, Jayman has also been certifying at this level.
Built Green certification has played a pivotal role in progressing their sustainable building practices, since enrolling their first home in 2005. The program guides Jayman’s annual specification improvements as they consider energy efficiency, water conservation, indoor air quality, homeowner comfort, sustainability and durability. The majority of Jayman BUILT homes are BUILT GREEN® Gold certified, and they have certified over 13,350 homes in Built Green’s 20-plus year history.
Dave currently serves as the Chair of the Built Green Canada Board of Directors and participates on the BILD Calgary Technical Committee and the CHBA National Net Zero Council. These roles allow Dave to share his passion for sustainable building and benefit Jayman by keeping them informed on Energy Code updates, expanding their network of like-minded builders, staying ahead of trends in electrification and energy efficiency, and incorporating industry-leading energy efficiency standards into their homes and specifications.
With the support of local and provincial BILD associations, Built Green Canada and CHBA National, Dave is proud to be included in conversations around sustainable building practices, changes to building code, government policies and other environmental initiatives.
“It is through engagement within the industry and participation that we will see the greatest impact championing real change—we’re able to show what is possible through Built Green’s programs,” says Dave Krasman.
Regardless of barriers that challenge the industry, their goal is to continue to find innovative ways to improve energy efficiency in home building while keeping the purchase price of their homes attainable for Albertan homebuyers. Their aim is to shift expectations in the industry, making environmental inclusions standard. Partnering with organizations like Built Green remains essential for amplifying their message—through a shared commitment to promoting sustainable practices and setting higher industry standards.
Jayman BUILT’s organizational strategy, guiding principles and marketing strategy are centred around differentiating themselves as the leading energy efficient builder in Alberta—industry champions for environmental sustainability. By setting the example, leading the way and sharing their learnings, they are working to improve the quality of life of Albertans and welcome other builders to follow suit.
They receive recognition from fellow builders, utility partners, local and provincial government agencies, and are often asked to collaborate on strategies for introducing sustainable building practices across the industry—helping pave the way for other builders to advance their own solar, net-zero and third-party certification initiatives.
Working to progress education and demand for sustainable building, Jayman BUILT’s marketing focuses on the value and benefits to the homeowner. This includes highlighting the impact of energy efficiency inclusions on reducing electricity costs by up to 50% and lowering annual greenhouse gas emissions. The benefits are communicated in a way that resonates with customers by clearly explaining why these energy-efficient inclusions matter to them and how they contribute to a more sustainable future.
Chairman, CEO and Founder, of Jayman BUILT, Jay Westman, has instilled a sense of responsibility among his team. This, with the belief that we only have one planet, and it is our collective responsibility to operate sustainably and ensure our building practices are environmentally responsible. Jayman BUILT’s business strategy is centered on sustainable building practices and offering energy-efficient features to all homeowners, regardless of home model, community, budget or lifestyle.
Over 20 years ago, Jay saw a version of Built Green in Denver. As part of his work as President of what is now BILD CR, he spearheaded the development of Built Green Canada, a nonprofit created to guide and progress sustainable building practices across the industry through third-party certification. Through funding research with SAIT and other stakeholders, new training programs and introducing blower door testing, the Built Green program began to take shape in Canada.
Jayman BUILT sees the next step for industry progress as requiring a unified approach that ensures sustainable building practices become the norm across industry. They want to see comprehensive energy efficiency and code training for builders and trade partners; standardized construction methods that lead to greater consistency and efficiency; efforts to reduce construction costs through economies of scale and improved processes; and greater cooperation and financial support from municipal and provincial governments to incentivize and support the transition to more sustainable building practices.
As the first Built Green Canada member and industry leaders, they have been at the forefront of driving change in the sector. By negotiating costs and materials with trades and suppliers, encouraging competitors to include more energy-efficient products, and educating new home buyers on the value of sustainable features, they have set the standard for the industry to follow. With Dave Krasman at the helm of their ongoing performance initiatives, Jayman BUILT just keeps stepping forward into the future of sustainable building.
The Maverick Awards are another step forward in Built Green Canada's mission to progress sustainability practices and recognize leadership; this year, four winners have been announced in conjunction with title co-sponsors, Jayman BUILT and SkyFire Energy. For this Ambassador Award, sponsored by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, the Mavericks recognized Jim Zsiros of J. Zsiros Contracting for exemplifying the power of hands-on ambassadorship—he’s created a ripple effect that’s elevated green building standards, particularly Built Green, across the region. Meanwhile, s2e Technologies won the Innovation Award for their London-based project, EVE Park, which is aiming for a net zero residential development rethinking suburban living: addressing high performance buildings and smart parking. While the Transformational Award had a tie this year. One of its winners is Best Builders for their Phoenix House in Delta, a remarkable rebuild setting a new benchmark for low-carbon renovations, while addressing resilience and holistic sustainability. The other is Spring Creek Mountain Village in Canmore, which has transformed from a mobile home park into an impressive multi-phase community largely fueled by geo-exchange, which embraces social, environmental and economic sustainability.