Insulation industry news from Global Insulation

UK: The British Rigid Urethane Foam Manufacturers’ Association has changed its name to the Insulation Manufacturers Association (IMA). The association said that the new name reflects the position that polyisocyanurate (PIR) and polyurethane (PUR) insulation manufacturers hold in providing the largest share of insulation products used in the UK market. It added that given expected growing market share of organic-based insulation products that, “…the trade association has a responsibility to ensure it is the principal point of contact for all audiences relevant to this sector with a name that reflects this responsibility.”

Simon Storer, Chief Executive of IMA said that the association need to move towards a wider audience that wasn’t necessarily used to technical or industry language. “Events of this year certainly brought this need into sharp focus, as many commentators and other interested parties were unable to immediately identify which trade association spoke for which part of the industry. We also wanted to be sure that as an association we are solely responsible for and have ownership of the messages coming from this sector.”

UK: The British Rigid Urethane Foam Manufacturers’ Association (BRUFMA) has said that the materials tested so far by BRE Group, following the Grenfell fire in June 2017, do not meet building regulations and would never be recommended or approved for use by the members of BRUFMA in a real building.

The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has commissioned six BS 8414 tests using a combination of materials, including the make-up of the outer cladding system. The first aluminium composite material (ACM) cladding test, carried out by BRE combined an assembly of polyisocyanurate (PIR) insulation used in conjunction with an unmodified polyethylene filled ACM cladding panel. Both PIR foam and mineral wool are being tested with each cladding system.

BRUFMA described the situation as ‘worrying’ that a number of buildings have been identified with this combination, indicating a lack of compliance to existing rules and regulations. However, it has advised that all six tests should be completed satisfactorily before any analysis is drawn and remedial action is proposed by the government. It also highlighted that PIR insulation manufactured in the UK and Ireland that is recommended for use in high-rise buildings is tested with the BS 8414 fire test as part of a complete ventilated rainscreen system.

UK: The British Rigid Urethane Foam Manufacturers’ Association (BRUFA) has warned against ‘misleading’ claims being made in relation to the Grenfell Tower fire ahead of a government investigation. In a statement the body for the rigid polyisocyanurate (PIR) and polyurethane (PUR) Insulation Industry in the UK said it would challenge and correct any misleading allegations about the incident and provide information to assist an ‘accurate’ analysis. It added that the PIR and PUR insulation industry is an established and responsible one with a usage of over 50 years in the construction sector.

“We have a growing concern that misleading claims, supported by selective data are gaining traction and being reported as facts. If this supposition takes hold before the enquiry has established the truth of the matter, there is a danger it will lead to the wrong conclusions and decisions, that will do nothing to improve the future safety of buildings, including high-rise tower blocks. It may also lead to behavioural changes that could be detrimental to the future welfare of the built environment,” said BRUFA.

The UK government has appointed Martin Moore-Bick, a former judge, to head the public inquiry into the fire. As well as investigating the incident, the inquiry is expected to recommend changes to national building regulations.

UK: The British Rigid Urethane Foam Manufacturers' Association (BRUFMA) has called for the government to ensure that any new house building campaigns deliver energy efficient buildings and continue to increase the building standards for the sector. BRUFMA was responding to the publication of a White Paper or government report on the local market entitled ‘Fixing our broken housing market.’ The association recognised that the White Paper highlighted a need to continually review the current energy performance standards with regard to climate change targets and to domestic fuel poverty. It added that this should be extended to include the performance in flood risk areas of housing and the materials used in their construction.

‘The White Paper launches a consultation with a range of recommendations to increase numbers of homes being built in the UK. However, there are likely to be many conflicting views so I hope the government doesn’t use this as a way of kicking the problem into the long grass. However many houses are built we must ensure that all new housing is highly energy efficient in line with our climate change objectives. Just because there is a rush to build shouldn’t be an excuse to lower the quality of the thermal performance. And we certainly don’t want to have to come back and retrofit in 20 years because the houses we build today do not meet tomorrow’s requirements,” said Simon Storer, the chief executive of BRUFMA.

UK: Simon Storer has been appointed as the chief executive of the British Rigid Urethane Manufacturers Association (BRUFMA) with effect from 9 January 2017. Previously, Storer was the Head of Communications at BACTA, the trade body representing the British amusement industry. Before this he worked as the External Affairs Director at the Construction Products Association (CPA) for seven years. He has also worked for the architect Levitt Bernstein, Shoreditch New Deal for Communities project and for the Channel Tunnel project during its construction phase.