Insulation industry news from Global Insulation

Belgium: Recticel recorded consolidated sales of Euro295m in the first quarter of 2022, up by 43% year-on-year from Euro206m in the first quarter of 2021. The group attributed the growth partly to a 28% year-on-year increase in its insulation sales in the quarter. It ended the quarter with net financial debt of Euro130m, down by 12% year-on-year from Euro148m. Recticel said that the quarter brought progress towards closing its divestment of its engineered foams business line to US-based Carpenter in mid-2022.

The group said that, despite geopolitical instability and inflationary pressure, its business continues to develop well in 2022. It continues to work on accelerated growth plans in order to double its insulation sales over a period ending in 2025.

Belgium: Knauf Insulation has officially opened a new Euro15m glass mineral wool recycling plant in Visé. It will recycle the glass mineral wool as part of its ‘Resulation’ service. The site will also recycle production off-cuts from Knauf Insulation’s Visé glass mineral wool production plant using a dedicated production line and furnace. The inauguration event was attended by Olivier de Wasseige, managing director of the Walloon Enterprise Network.

Dominique Bossan, member of Knauf Group’s management committee and head of Knauf Insulation Europe, Middle East and Asia, said, “The new facility is an important step towards achieving Knauf Insulation’s commitment to generate zero waste to landfill by 2025 as part of the company’s ‘For A Better World’ sustainability strategy.

Knauf Insulation says that around 85,000t/yr of glass mineral wool waste are generated in France, while in Belgium and the Netherlands the figure is around 30,000t/yr with 26,000t of that total coming from demolition.

Belgium: Recticel’s insulation business has used price rises to compensate for a steep rise in the price of raw chemical input materials. The division’s sales grew by 57% year-on-year to Euro391m in 2021 from Euro249m in 2020. Its adjusted earnings before taxation, interest, depreciation and amortisation (EBTIDA) more than doubled to Euro62.4m from Euro27.5m. It said that its Insulation and Engineered Foams businesses performed well in a volatile environment. Chemical raw materials supply reportedly remain tight and prices are showing little signs of stabilisation. Transportation and labour costs are increasing at an “unprecedented” rate. However it added that energy cost inflation has a minor impact given the “very low energy intensity of our business.” Overall the group’s sales and adjusted EBITDA rose by 67.4% to Euro1.03bn and by 134% to Euro89.7m.

“We are happy with the very positive sales and profitability development in 2021, a year marked by deep changes in our company. Changes which were planned and announced, such as the acquisition and integration of FoamPartner and the divestment of the Bedding activities. Changes which came as a consequence of the unsolicited takeover bid by Greiner, such as the divestment of our newly created Engineered Foams business segment,” said chief executive officer Olivier Chapelle.

Belgium: Recticel Insulation has obtained Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) for its multilayer thermal insulation products. It says that it is the first polyisocyanurate (PIR) and polyurethane (PUR) producer to do so. The insulation manufacturer will be selling thermal insulation products, with multilayer paper facings made from wood fibres sourced from a PEFC-certified and sustainably managed forests. The PEFC label will be added to its Recticel Eurowall, Eurothane Silver, Eurothane Silver A, Eurofloor, Euroroof, Eurothane GP, Eurowall Cavity and Eurothane Eurodeck products.

Recticel Insulation already held the PEFC label for some of its insulation products manufactured at its plants in Bourges, France and Stoke-on-Trent, UK. The certification is now being gradually rolled out to more products and to all plants where multilayer facings are used.

Netherlands: Belgium-based Triple Helix has signed an agreement as one of the first concessionaires at the NextGen District at the Port of Antwerp. It plans to build a plant to convert polyurethane foam, from insulation panels and other sources, into polyols. These chemicals can then be reused, for example in the production of new polyurethane products. The plant is intended to be fully circular and self-sufficient in terms of energy.

Steven Peleman, the chief executive officer of Triple Helix, said “To drastically reduce emissions and waste pollution, we want to show the principle of material reincarnation to the world. In our plant at NextGen District, we want to recover polyurethane foams at the end of their life and transform them into their main components to be used again in new products. This is innovative and challenging, but with Port of Antwerp, BlueChem and our industrial and knowledge partners, we are ready to fight this battle. Not words but deeds!”

The Port of Antwerp has set aside the former 88 hectare General Motors site to develop into a future circular economy hotspot. Rubber and plastics recycling company US-based Bolder Industries has also signed up for an early place at the port.

Romania: Belgium-based Knauf Insulation has agreed to acquire the Târnăveni glass wool plant from Gecsat for an undisclosed sum.

Dominique Bossan, the group chief executive officer of Knauf Insulation, said “The Romanian acquisition will support Knauf Insulation’s growth ambitions and add extra capacity to meet increasing demand for our solutions across the Eastern European and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) regions.” He added that the company plans to upgrade the plant after the acquisition has been completed.

Spain: Etex has signed a deal with Germany-based Xella Group for the acquisition of its subsidiary URSA. The Belgium-based group says that the move confirms its portfolio shift towards lightweight construction materials. URSA produces its expanded polystyrene (EPS), extruded polystyrene (XPS) and glass and mineral wool insulation across a total of 13 sites and has operations in 20 European countries.

Chief executive officer Bernard Delvaux said “The acquisition of URSA confirms the portfolio shift initiated a few years ago by Etex to become a global leader in lightweight and modular construction. This acquisition is a strategic fit for Etex combining a new growth platform with a strong focus on sustainability. I have been truly impressed by both the quality of the management at URSA and its sound business model. I look forward to welcoming our new teammates to Etex and embarking on a prosperous future together.”

Belgium: Plastics producer Greiner has offered to fully acquire Recticel for Euro1.17bn, including debt. Austria-based Greiner currently holds a 27% stake in the company. The group has valued Recticel’s insulation business at Euro411m. However, Recticel has said that the offer undervalues the division. US-based foam and fibres producer Carpenter previously valued the insulation business at Euro656m in its on-going bid to acquire the company’s engineered foams unit.

Recticel has until 17 December 2021 to issue its decision on the Greiner offer. Before then, it will decide on the possible sale of its engineered foams unit to Carpenter at an extraordinary general meeting. It is currently carrying out due diligence checks for the latter deal.

Belgium: Dominique Bossan has stepped into the roles of head of Knauf Insulation and member of Knauf Insulation Europe/Middle East/Africa’s management committee. Bossan first joined Knauf Insulation in 2003 and has since held roles as Eastern Europe regional managing director and as a member of Knauf Gypsum Western Europe, South America and Israel’s management. He now returns to Knauf Insulation’s headquarters in Visé, Belgium, to take over leadership from Jean-Claude Carlin, who has held the position since 2016.

Bossan said “Jean-Claude, the management team and everyone at Knauf Insulation should be exceptionally proud of what has been achieved in recent years. I am now looking forward to maximising this success to create exciting new opportunities in the future — a future defined by our leadership and innovation For a Better World.”

General partner Alexander Knauf said “The Knauf Group management is delighted to welcome Dominique to this exciting role. He is an exceptional leader who knows our business extremely well. We are confident he will build on the outstanding results Jean-Claude, and the company, has achieved in recent years.”

Belgium: Etex is investing Euro1.2m on an upgrade to its Sint-Niklaas high performance insulation plant. The project is intended to increase the plant’s capacity by 30% in order to benefit cold supply chain markets currently supporting vaccine transport. The company estimates that it will generate over Euro6m in sales from its ‘high-performance, ultra-thin’ insulation products used in both building applications and passively cooled containers for vaccine transport.

Head of Industry Steven Heytens said “Our products contribute to global energy efficiency and create sustainable value for our customers. Driven by the European Union Green Deal, we expect the demand for thin insulation solutions for building and cool logistics applications to increase strongly in the coming years. This investment fits with our growth strategy and confirms our commitment to strengthening our European position in high performance microporous insulation.”