Insulation industry news from Global Insulation

US: Installed Building Products (IBP) has closed its acquisition of Alpha Insulation and Waterproofing. Alpha Insulation and Waterproofing, based in Atlanta in Georgia, will continue to operate under its existing brand name through an expanding network of nine branches located in Georgia, Florida, Texas, Tennessee and North Carolina. Alpha's focus on commercial insulation, waterproofing, fire stopping and fireproofing will add to IBP’s revenue mix and its commercial construction platform.

"We are excited about closing the Alpha acquisition and are focused on successfully integrating Alpha's operations over the coming months, which we expect will be immediately accretive to earnings," said Jeff Edwards, IBP's chairman and chief executive officer.

US: IDI Distributors, a wholesale insulation distributor, has acquired Kevin Distributing (KDI), a distributor of polyurethane spray foam insulation and related services, to operate as a division of IDI. The purchase will broaden IDI’s geographic coverage to the mountain states and expand both distributors’ product portfolios and service capabilities. The KDI division of IDI will be led by Dan Bitney, branch manager of KDI. IDI will also bring the KDI management team on board to maintain continuity with customers.

US: The Reflective Insulation Manufacturers Association International (RIMA-I) has elected four new directors following its autumn meeting in 2016. Lynn Walters of STS Coatings, Doug Kinninger of Fi-Foil Company, Peter Highfill of Oracle Packaging (LL Flex) and Sergio Luconi of Prodex (Costa Rica) have all been appointed directors for a two-year term starting on 1 January 2017. RIMA-I is a trade organisation that represents the reflective insulation, radiant barrier, and low-e reflective coatings industries.

US: Honeywell has filed legal action against MEK Chemical for selling HFC-245fa in the US, an alleged violation of a Honeywell process patent. The liquid blowing agent used in the production of foam insulation, is manufactured by Honeywell under the brand name Enovate, according to ICIS.

US: Sika has agreed to acquire Rmax Operating, a US-based producer of polyiso insulation products for complete building envelope solutions, including roofing and wall systems. The purchase is anticipated to drive Sika’s growth in the North American market via synergies between the companies. Rmax generated sales in excess of US$75m in 2016. The transaction is subject to clearance by anti-trust authorities.

“The acquisition of Rmax fits perfectly with Sika’s growth strategy in North America, further strengthening our already fast-growing building systems in roofing, sealants and waterproofing. Rmax brings us a proven industry leader, with strong innovations for building envelope applications, along with manufacturing expertise for wall and roofing insulation. We proudly welcome the Rmax employees to the Sika team and are excited about growing our business together,” said Christoph Ganz, Regional Manager North America for Sika.

Rmax Operating produces insulation products and accessories at three production sites in Dallas in Texas, Greer in South Carolina and Fernley in Nevada. Currently Sika USA purchases insulation products from third party suppliers to include in its solutions for roofing and building envelopes. With this acquisition it will now be possible to benefit from in-house production.

UK: TechnoNicol International plants to use Stirling-based Superglass to launch an expansion programme in the US and to develop its market in the UK and Ireland. TechnoNicol has created a new division at the company it purchased in July 2016 to achieve this aim and has made senior appointments to support it. The company aims to establish a ‘significant’ market share in North America over the next five years.

Ken Munro, Superglass’s chief executive officer, has become chief executive officer of TechnoNicol (UK, Ireland and USA). In this newly created role, Munro will have responsibility for the management and coordination of TechnoNicol’s presence in these regions and will continue to lead and develop the Superglass business as it is incorporated into this expanded structure.

Munro will also have responsibility for the global development of the Superglass brand as it begins to play a part in TechnoNicol’s overall insulation products strategy. As further businesses are developed, both organically and by acquisition, they will be integrated into this unified regional structure, with new jobs likely to be created in Stirling as the regional headquarters takes shape.

Stuart Rowell, who is currently Group Business Development Director at Superglass, and Girts Dikelsons, currently Regional Director TechnoNicol (UK and USA), will be responsible for sales and marketing activity across all product lines in the new region and are appointed as Regional Sales Director (Insulation Solutions) and Regional Sales Director (Bitumen Membrane Solutions) respectively.

Theresa McLean, Superglass’s Chief Financial Officer, has been appointed as chief financial officer of TechnoNicol (UK, Ireland and USA) and Mark Atherton, Operations Director at Superglass, becomes Chief Production Officer and Head of Operations for the newly expanded regional business. Rowell, Dikelsons, McLean, and Atherton will all report directly to Ken Munro.

US: Owens Corning’s insulation sales have fallen by 4% year-on-year to US$1.28bn in the first nine months of 2016 from US$1.33bn in the same period in 2015. Its earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) fell by 7.8% to US$83m from US$90m. The company described the US new residential construction market as ‘competitive’ and said that it expects its insulation revenue in 2016 to drop by 5%. However, it believes that pricing stabilised late in the summer of 2016 and that the mid-term outlook for this business remains unchanged.

Across all businesses, the company reported that its net sales rose by 5.9% to US$4.29bn from US$4.05bn and that its EBIT rose by 37% to US$563m from US$410m. It also mentioned the strong performance of its roofing business in the third quarter of 2016.

US: The board of directors of Stepan Company has unanimously appointed F Quinn Stepan, Jr, the company's president and CEO and a director, to succeed F Quinn Stepan as chairman. Stepan, Jr will assume the role upon his father’s retirement on 31 December 2016. Stepan, Sr has served as chairman since 1984, and previously served as CEO of the company from November 1984 to December 2005. The company also announced that Edward J Wehmer will serve as lead independent director, effective upon Stepan Sr's retirement.

US: Installed Building Products has purchased East Coast Insulators, a provider of insulation services to residential and commercial customers in the Virginia, West Virginia, Washington DC and Maryland markets through two Virginia locations. "With US$20m of annual revenues, East Coast Insulators has a large presence within strong and growing markets, and this acquisition will help expand our presence in the mid-Atlantic region," said Jeff Edwards, chairman and chief executive officer of Installed Building Products.

US: Kingspan Insulation has launched Kooltherm, its rigid thermoset insulation, in the US. The line offers a range of products for wall, floor, soffit and rainscreen applications. It has a fibre-free rigid thermoset phenolic insulation core that resists both moisture and water vapour ingress.

"Kingspan is committed to bringing its globally-innovative technology to the North American market," said Alswinn Kieboom, managing director, Kingspan Insulation North America. "As part of this continuing effort, we are excited to offer our Kooltherm insulation to the construction marketplace. Our class-leading R-value and fire resistance properties will prove to be beneficial to the construction community."