Insulation industry news from Global Insulation

Germany: Declare has certified Knauf Insulation’s Supafil blowing wool insulation ‘Red List Free’. The declaration signifies that Supafil contains no Red-Listed chemicals designated as harmful to health by the International Living Future Institute. Knauf Insulation Blowing Wool business development & residential market manager Thomas Baguette said, “Our Declare label underlines the natural credentials of our blowing wool. Supafil is composed of 99% glass mineral wool and less than 1% of antidust and antistatic.”

Ireland: Kingspan Group’s sales fell by 3% year-on-year to Euro1.03bn in the first quarter of 2020. It said that the coronavirus-related lockdowns did not ‘significantly’ impact activity for most of the reporting period although the, “landscape changed markedly from the middle of March onward.” The UK and Germany reported improvements, the Americas did well and both Australasia and the Middle East saw rising orders. Insulation board sales were strongly impacted by falling prices. Looking forward the group said that its global sales fell by nearly 35% year-on-year as various construction markets were closed down.

Germany: Knauf Insulation has launched its ‘As Safe As Home’ marketing campaign to promote health and safety issues in relation to new working environments created by the coronavirus pandemic. Chief executive officer (CEO) Jean-Claude Carlin said, “Safety has always been our first priority but when the crisis hit our business, it inspired the best in us. We learnt to create places that are safer than ever. Safety had to be everywhere for everyone. At home. At work. 24/7. Having achieved so much, this approach can now never be compromised.”

US: Germany-based Knauf Insulation has launched an appeal against the decision of a Californian court in a civil dispute over staff pay. The claimants allege that Knauf Insulation has failed to pay overtime wages, meal and rest period premiums and minimum wages. Knauf was also accused of failing to maintain records to provide accurate wage statements. Class Action reporter has reported that case will pass to the US Court of Appeals.

Spain/Portugal: Knauf Insulation Iberia met its company growth objective of 5% year-on-year growth in 2019, a year in which it supplied two major developments: the Government of Catalonia’s administrative complex and the VP Plaza Hotel in Madrid. The latter won the US Green Building Council (GBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certificate, the first hotel to achieve this certification.

Interempresas News has reported that the focus of Knauf Insulation Iberia’s strategy in 2020 will be on maintaining its leadership in the sustainable building sector and in the search for products and solutions aimed at zero energy consumption building conversions and construction. Knauf Insulation Iberia CEO Oscar del Rio said, “Bearing in mind the economic uncertainty derived from the coronavirus crisis, our objective will be to maintain our penetration objectives.”

The company’s growth in 2018 was 10%.

Netherlands: Germany-based Knauf has rolled out a waste glass mineral wool insulation recycling pilot project across the Netherlands. At a small cost, a Knauf partner company will take back leftover insulation from customers’ projects, which is remotely quantified and scheduled for collection by Knauf’s software system. The partner company recycles the insulation for use in bricks and tiles. Knauf Western Europe circular economy manager Marc Bosmans said, “The scheme saves our customers costs, gives them peace of mind that waste is being dealt with responsibly and lowers the environmental impact of their projects.”

Knauf has also launched a pallet pick-up pilot project. Under the scheme, customers can contact a Knauf partner company in order to have the pallets on which Knauf products were delivered collected for reuse, in line with the principles of the circular economy. Bosmans said, “Customers, particularly those on large sites, see a huge added value in this service and appreciate that it is a one-stop solution that is good for business and good for the environment.”

Germany: Evonik has announced the release of a new Calostat silicon dioxide-based mineral insulation panel. Evonik technical sales manager Oliver Jung says that the panel, which is cut to 500mm x 200mm, is ‘an ideal option where space is limited.’

Germany: Knauf Insulation has announced the 11 winners of its Leadership Awards at its Leadership Conference 2020 on 6 February in Iphofen, Bavaria. Winners came from Knauf’s sales, customer service, human resources, retail and finance divisions across all its operating regions. Knauf Insulation Group human resources director Patrice Briol said, “Our award-winners demonstrate leadership qualities and live the Knauf Values every day.”

Denmark: Rockwool’s post-tax profit for 2019 was Euro285m, up by 7.5% from Euro265m in 2018. Sales rose by 3.2% to Euro2.8bn from Euro2.7bn. The company’s insulation section saw ‘mixed market conditions’ but ‘showed modest growth’ over the period, thanks in particular to state-supported energy efficiency improvement in construction practices generating increased demand in the South-West Europe region.

Rockwool said that it invested in long-term growth, having opened a plant in Romania in late-2019, with a capacity expansion to a German plant due to come online in mid-2020 and a further plant in the US to follow in early 2021. Rockwool Group chairman Henrik Brandt and CEO Jens Birgersson said, “For the fifth year in a row, our customer satisfaction scores increased.” Satisfaction rose by 14% year-on-year.

Ireland: Kingspan’s sales for the first nine months of 2019 rose by 8% year-on-year to Euro3.43bn. However, its sales in the third quarter fell by 2% year-on-year due to slowing sales in the UK. Sales of insulated panels saw a ‘substantial’ reduction in order intake in the UK in the third quarter reducing by more than 15% in volume versus the same period in 2018. European and American markets were stable with the exception of Germany. Insulation board sales were affected by slowing sales in the UK, Ireland and Germany. The group expects these market trends to continue into the first quarter of 2020 at least.