Insulation industry news from Global Insulation

US: Germany’s BASF plans to launch the second phase of its methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) unit at its Verbund plant in Geismar, Louisiana. The first phase of the upgrade was set to double the company’s MDI production capacity to nearly 0.6Mt/yr from 0.3Mt/yr. The new US$87m investment will continue this process. Construction is expected to start in late 2019 with completion scheduled for 2021.

“With the development of the American market, BASF needs this investment to support the growth of our existing customers,” said BASF Senior Vice President Stefan Doerr. “The Geismar site is ideally suited for this investment thanks to the existing infrastructure, competitive raw materials and favourable business support from state and local governments. This investment also demonstrates our strong commitment to our employees, our community and our presence in Louisiana.”

US: Rockwool has started legal action against the Jefferson County Board of Education (BOE) describing its attempts to stop construction of new mineral wool insulation plant as ‘unlawful.’ Court documents filed by the Danish insulation company allege that the BOE is trying to buy land from Rockwool for a low rate to build a student support centre otherwise it has threatened to appropriate it under US condemnation rules. Rockwool contends that the BOE originally supported the new plant with tax breaks but has since change its mind as local activists have opposed the project.

Rockwool started construction work on its US$150m mineral wool plant at Ranson, West Virginia in mid-2018. Production at the site is scheduled to start in early 2020.

US: Canada’s IKO plans to build a new US$70m plant in Hagerstown, Maryland. It will be the company’s sixth US manufacturing location. The 46,000m² plant and warehouse site will be used to manufacture will produce roofing and insulation products including polyisocyanurate insulation. It is scheduled to open in mid-2020.

"Hagerstown is another example of IKO's commitment to building the strongest and most state of the art production network in our industry," said Guy Tremblay, IKO's Vice President of North American Operations.

Russia: TechnoNicol plans to spend around Euro5m on an upgrade to its Chelyabinsk mineral wool plant. The majority of the investment will go towards refurbishing the unit’s production line, according to the AK&M Information Agency. The rest will be spent on installing additional cleaning and treatment systems. Once the upgrade is completed the plant will start producing rolled technical insulation materials based on rock wool. The unit will have a production capacity of 0.27Mm³/yr

Slovenia: A fire has caused damage to Knauf Insulation’s Škofja Loka mineral wool plant. The fire started in a warehouse before spreading on 2 February 2019 before it was extinguished, according to the Slovenian Press Agency. No injuries were reported during the incident. The cause of the blaze is being investigated.

US: Duna-USA has completed an expansion upgrade to its plant and headquarters in Baytown, Texas. The work, which began in late 2016, included the addition of a new manufacturing building, new office building, automated fabrication department and an additional production line. Work on the project finished in late December 2018.

“We’ve significantly increased production and fabrication capabilities, enhanced quality and expect to reduce lead times, while increasing production efficiency at the same time,” said Marta Brozzi, president of the DUNA Group

Duna-USA manufactures polyurethane and polyisocyanurate foams and chemicals for the insulation, aerospace, automotive, marine and construction industries. Italy’s Duna Group, comprised of Duna-Corradini, Duna-USA, and Duna-Emirates, has been manufacturing foams, chemicals and adhesives since 1957. It specialises in the research and development of polyurethane and epoxy systems, with manufacturing locations in the US, Europe and the UAE.

US: Owens Corning has purchased an existing plant in Blythewood, South Carolina where it intends to manufacture coated, non-woven products for a variety of applications within the North American building materials industry. It has spent US$13.6m on the acquisition.

The insulation producer intends to convert an existing line to produce coated, non-woven products. The acquisition is the first step in the creation of a glass non-wovens excellence centre, where the company will continue to invest to expand its capacity with the best available technologies. With existing South Carolina locations in Aiken, Charleston, Duncan and Starr, this will be Owens Corning’s first Richland County presence. Hiring for the new positions is expected to begin in late 2019.

“The Blythewood operation represents a valuable addition to a thriving business. Adding this new capacity and capability for glass-based coating solutions in South Carolina will help us to better serve our residential and commercial building products customers across North America,” said Owens Corning’s Global Non-Wovens Business Vice President Nicolas Del Monaco.

Slovenia: Knauf Insulation has celebrated the 60th anniversary of its Škofja Loka mineral wool plant. The plant originally opened in 1958 under the Termika brand. The company also opened the Knauf Insulation Experience Center (KIEXC), a sustainable building showcase. KIEXC will be used to provide an educational base for the latest construction techniques, energy advisory consultations and training.

“Thanks to Škofja Loka’s pioneering research and development we are the cutting edge of innovative solutions such as sandwich panels, fire-resistant rock mineral wool systems and domestic appliance insulation,” said Jean-Claude Carlin, president of the board of Knauf Insulation.

US: Foam Systems has opened a new spray foam insulation plant at Norwalk in Connecticut. The producer claims it is the only such producer in New England. The company produces products including Thermoseal Spray Foam Insulation, Igloo Foam Insulation and others. It plans to open other plants across the US and provide private label services to other spray foam brands and to anyone who would like a private label spray foam insulation system.

“With the ever-changing environment in the spray foam industry given all the mergers and acquisitions, the only way to survive in the future is to open manufacturing locations across the US. We are fully committed to this effort and have multiple manufacturing facilities across the US under consideration” said Richard Ettinger, General Manager of Foam Systems.

US: Germany’s Covestro plans to spend Euro1.5bn on building a new methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) plant at Baytown in Texas. The new plant will have a production capacity of 0.5Mt/yr and production is expected to start in 2024. The investment at the existing site in Baytown is the largest single investment in the history of the company. It will replace the 90,000t/yr MDI unit at the site.

“Demand for innovative MDI materials will continue to grow for the foreseeable future and likewise promises attractive capacity utilisation rates. We have already announced a significant increase in capital expenditures, now it’s time to put it into action”, said Markus Steilemann, chief executive officer (CEO) of Covestro. He added that the investment would strengthen the company’s ‘leading position’ in polyurethanes.

Covestro is also running a global investment programme in MDI production capacity, including plans to double its MDI production at Brunsbuettel, Germany to 0.4Mt/yr from 0.2Mt/yr by the second half of 2019. Other parts of this initiative include the continuation and expansion of plants in Tarragona in Spain, Caojing in China and Antwerp in Belgium.