Insulation industry news from Global Insulation

UK: Rockwool subsidiary Wetherby Wall Systems has launched SOQEL A2, an external wall insulation system for use below damp-proof course. The system integrates Rockwool’s Coverrock X-2 pre-coated insulation with Heck K+A SL coating and Heck CER mesh. Specification Online News has reported that the system complies with the A2-s1,d0 UK fire standard for buildings over 11m tall.

Technical director Joe Ragdale said “We have worked alongside our Rockwool sister company Heck in Germany to launch this innovative system into the UK market. This solution provides architects and contractors working on remediation projects with a compliant, durable, and efficient way to enhance building safety.”

UK: Rockwool has submitted a Section 73 application to Birmingham City Council in support of its plans to build a factory at a site in Peddimore, Minworth. The plant would be only its second in the UK. The application requests permission to vary some of the details in the current planning permissions at Peddimore to suit Rockwool's specific proposal. If approved, Rockwool will then submit a more detailed reserved matters application later in 2025 or early 2026. Once detailed plans are developed there will be another round of community consultation. Rockwool hopes that construction can begin in 2026, with production starting in 2029.

Rockwool's proposed new factory will feature proprietary electric melting technology and boost supply capacity for UK and Ireland customers while also supporting its global sustainability plans. The Peddimore site at Minworth has been designated specifically for manufacturing and logistics uses and is part of a long-running regeneration and development project.

Rockwool’s UK and Ireland managing director Nick Wilson said "Since we announced our intentions to expand the business into the West Midlands, we have had an opportunity to share our plans with the community and are very grateful to those who have provided feedback. We are taking all feedback into consideration as we develop the plans and have included the community's observations so far in our Section 73 application to the council. We look forward to meeting with community members again in the coming months."

UK: The government has accepted the recommendations of a public inquiry into the Grenfell Tower disaster, in which 72 people died in a fire that spread through exterior cladding systems in a residential block in London. The Guardian newspaper has reported that the inquiry recommended actions against seven different organisations that share in responsibility for the spread of the deadly fire. The inquiry's final report named these organisations as Kingspan Insulation, Saint-Gobain Construction Products, Harley Facades and testing company Exova Group, along with aluminium and bonded sheets producer Arconic Architectural Products, property development and management company Rydon Maintenance and architecture firm Studio E Architects. Additionally, the report recommended the introduction of a unified regulatory body for the construction industry and the consolidation of fire safety matters under the Department of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said "The final report exposed in stark and devastating detail the shocking industry behaviour and wider failures that led to the fire, and the deep injustices endured by the bereaved, survivors and residents.”

UK Shadow Housing and Communities Secretary Kevin Hollinrake told Parliament that criminal charges against those responsible must follow ‘where evidence allows.’

UK: Superglass has secured Code for Construction Product Information (CCPI) verification for its Superwall Cavity Batts range of insulation. Specification Online News has reported that the range is among the first in the insulation segment to receive this. The producer will seek verification for further products later in February 2025.

CCPI verification ensures the veracity and comprehensiveness of product information claims. It launched following the deathly Grenfell Tower disaster on 14 June 2017, where labelling was found to ‘deliberately misrepresent’ insulation’s fire safety performance.

UK: France-based Saint-Gobain has completed its acquisition of façade mortars and external wall insulation (EWI) systems producer Kilwaughter Minerals. Kilwaughter Minerals operates a plant and limestone quarry in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, and three distribution centres in Great Britain and Ireland, with a total of 200 employees. Its brands include K Rend renders and K Systems EWI systems.

UK: Knauf Insulation has reopened its St Helens glass wool insulation plant in Merseyside following a 25,000t/yr capacity expansion. Local press has reported that the upgrade included the installation of a larger furnace for melting locally-sourced glass cullet. The new equipment allows for the addition of higher-thickness products to Knauf Insulation’s existing ranges.

Merseyside Mayor Steve Rotheram attended the reopening and noted the plant’s importance in continuing St Helens’ tradition of glass products manufacturing.

UK: Denmark-based Rockwool is reportedly in ‘advanced talks’ to acquire a 9.3 hectare site in Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands from Birmingham City Council. The site comprises Zone B of the Peddimore industrial estate, which is approved for light industrial production. Estates Gazette Interactive News has reported that the purchase advances Rockwool's on-going strategic expansion of its presence in the UK.

UK: Denmark-based Rockwool has acquired external thermal insulation composite systems producer Wetherby Building Systems. Reuters has reported that the newly acquired company will now operate as part of Rockwool Wall Systems, under the name Wetherby Wall Systems. The integration parallels that of previous Rockwool acquisitions in other markets, like Fast Wall Systems in Poland and Heck Wall Systems in Germany.

Rockwool CEO Jes Munk Hansen said “The share of stone wool insulation in the Wetherby business has been growing steadily, and we will be completing this transition to a fully stone wool-based portfolio, as we have done in other markets in the past.” He added that this will advance Rockwool’s transformation of the construction sector towards non-combustible façades.

Wetherby Building Systems managing director Bob Deane said “There is a long-standing relationship between Wetherby and Rockwool, and the match is strong on all significant drivers.”

UK: A team at the University of Exeter in Devon is investigating possible types of insulation for small-scale farms to produce using byproducts from crop harvests. The project, supported by construction engineering firm Local Works Studio, is part of the Ecological Citizens Network. It is intended to bolster rural economies, address industrial labour shortages and advance sustainable construction. Farmers Guide News has reported that an accompanying podcast and other publications will help to generate engagement.

Team leader Caroline Nye said "Participation and employment in a pioneering, environmentally sensitive new industry, centred in the countryside, could foster a closer engagement of deprived rural communities with the land and bring the benefits of a distributed local economy."

UK: The six-year public inquiry into the Grenfell Tower fire, which claimed 72 lives in 2017, has issued its final report, finding fault with ‘dishonest’ companies, as well as former governments and a disorganised response from the fire service. The inquiry criticised the role of cladding manufacturers, notably US-based Arconic, for its ‘systematic dishonesty’ in concealing the true fire hazards of its products. Arconic, which produced the Reynobond 55 polyethylene cladding used on Grenfell Tower, was accused of having hidden ‘very poor’ fire safety test results from the public and certification bodies. In the report, the cladding is described as ‘extremely dangerous’ when used in folded cassette form, and was ‘by far the largest contributor’ to the Grenfell fire.

The inquiry also named both Celotex and Kingspan as contributors to the incident. Celotex was accused of making ‘false and misleading claims’ by presenting its product to cladding contractor Harley Facades as being safe and suitable for Grenfell, even though ‘it knew that was not the case.’ Insulation producer Kingspan reportedly ‘misled the market’ by not revealing the limitations of its product, which was used on a small section of the building. In response to these findings, the inquiry has called for a revision in testing materials and designs for fire safety, advocating for transparency by making these test results publicly accessible. The findings of this inquiry lay the groundwork for potential criminal charges, with police and prosecutors indicating that investigations will continue until the end of 2025, and decisions on criminal charges expected by the end of 2026, according to a report by the BBC.

Kingspan said in a statement “We welcome the publication of today’s report which is crucial to a public understanding of what went wrong and why. It explains clearly and unambiguously that the type of insulation (whether combustible or non-combustible) was immaterial, and that the principal reason for the fire spread was the PE ACM cladding, which was not made by Kingspan. Kingspan has long acknowledged the wholly unacceptable historical failings that occurred in part of our UK insulation business. These were in no way reflective of how we conduct ourselves as a Group, then or now. While deeply regrettable, they were not found to be causative of the tragedy and Kingspan has already emphatically addressed these issues.”

A spokesperson for Celotex said “The publication of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry report marks the conclusion of the inquiry’s work and we are considering its contents with care. This review was a significant and thorough undertaking, and the results of that work were disclosed promptly and proactively to relevant stakeholders, including the Grenfell Tower Inquiry. Independent testing commissioned following the review demonstrated that the cladding system described in the Celotex RS5000 marketing literature met the relevant safety criteria. That system was substantially different to that used at Grenfell Tower. Decisions about design, construction and the selection of materials for the Tower were made by construction industry professionals.”

A spokesperson for Arconic subsidiary Arconic Architectural Products (AAP), which Building News reports supplied aluminium composite material used for the rainscreen at Grenfell Tower, said “The company respects the Inquiry process. AAP cooperated fully with the work of the Inquiry and will continue to engage with further legal processes. Together with other parties, AAP has made financial contributions to settlements for those affected, as well as to the restorative justice fund. Throughout the Inquiry, AAP has maintained a number of points: AAP sold sheets of aluminium composite material as specified in the design process. This product was safe to use as a building material, and legal to sell in the UK as well as the more than 30 other countries in which AAP customers purchased the product. We reject any claim that AAP sold an unsafe product. AAP regularly conducted tests of its materials using third-party testing bodies. Reports on these results were all publicly available, and AAP made these reports available to its customers. AAP did not conceal information from or mislead any certification body, customer, or the public.”