Insulation industry news from Global Insulation

US: The Rockfon unit of Denmark's Rockwool International will build a US$42m plant in Marshall, Indiana to make acoustic ceiling tiles. The 130,000ft² plant will employ at least 90 people. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2016, with the plant opening in the middle of 2017 on a 404,686m² site at the Chickasaw Trail Industrial Park shared with corporate sibling Roxul.

The new plant will make ceiling tiles with stone wool insulation made at the neighbouring Roxul plant, which also owned by Rockwool. That US$160m plant opened in 2014 and employs 150 workers. It will be the fifth Rockfon plant worldwide and the first in North America. John Medio, Rockfon's President of the Americas, said that the plant is, "Extending global capacity and meeting the growing demand for Rockfon's stone wool acoustic ceiling products in North America."

The Mississippi Development Authority will give the company US$2.4m for infrastructure and worker training, with the Appalachian Region Commission providing US$300,000. The Tennessee Valley Authority and Marshall County are providing undisclosed assistance. Rockfon has been granted a 10-year tax exemption from non-school property taxes.

US: US developer Invenergy has signed a 125MW wind power purchase agreement with Owens Corning. When completed, Invenergy's Wake Wind facility in Texas will provide Owens Corning with power sufficient to supply 32,000 homes each year. Invenergy will also help Owens Corning support the wind power industry, a market to which the company supplies glass fibre reinforcements.

"Owens Corning has a long history of delivering energy-efficiency improvements through our products and in our operations," said Owens Corning Chief Sustainability Officer Frank O"Brien-Bernini. "Our ambitious and impactful greenhouse gas reduction goal is being made more achievable by collaborating with great partners, like Invenergy, to execute large scale wind energy agreements like this."

"Over the last few years there has been a seismic shift in the way corporate customers like Owens Corning have thought about the value proposition of renewable energy. Not only is it good for the environment, it's good for the bottom line," said Invenergy's Sales and Marketing Lead Craig Gordon. "By acting now, these customers are taking advantage of extremely competitive long-term wind energy pricing, as well as facilitating the transition to a sustainable and clean energy economy."

US: Installed Building Products has acquired California's Sierra Insulation Contractors Inc and Eco-Tect Insulation Inc, both installers of fiberglass and cellulose insulation. It has also acquired Overhead Door Company of Burlington, Inc, which installs and servicing garage doors and provides fulfillment services for windows, interior and exterior doors and molding. The terms of the deals were not disclosed.

US: US LBM has further bolstered its presence in the southeast of the US with the acquisition of Building Supply Association, headquartered in Powder Springs, Georgia. BSA is a provider of exterior building products that was founded in 2007 by Michael Langston and Tim Bice. Langston, Bice and Beau Vineyard will remain in place as operational leaders, together with the rest of the executive team.

"BSA is excited to join the US LBM team," said Langston, CEO and President of Building Supply Association. "This new partnership allows us to continue to invest in operations and enhance customer service. The opportunity for growth for our employees, customers and vendor partners is extraordinary."

BSA specialises in roofing, siding and windows, serving residential contractors in the new home construction and remodelling industry throughout Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee and Louisiana.

"Building Supply Association is a great addition to the US LBM family," said L T Gibson, President and CEO of US LBM. "This enables us to strategically serve the Atlanta area specialty contractor with exterior building supplies from BSA, while simultaneously providing gypsum products through Rosen Materials. BSA's unique business model and proprietary management systems have propelled them to top of their market. We are eager to partner with their associates and look forward to future opportunities together in the southeast."

US: Owens Corning has announced more ambitious sustainability goals to reduce greenhouse gas and toxic air emissions, along with new renewable power initiatives that will continue to expand the company's impact through sustainability.

"Owens Corning has a history of promoting energy efficiency through our products, our suppliers and our operations," said Chairman and CEO Mike Thaman. "Today's announcements reflect a continuation of our company's history of being a good steward of the environment."

Owens Corning will execute power supply agreements of newly-installed capacity that reportedly represent the largest wind power agreements reported by an industrial company in the world. It will also dedicate a 2.4MW solar canopy at its headquarters in Toledo that is expected to supply approximately 30% of the facility's electricity needs and offset the equivalent greenhouse gases emitted from the commute of its local workforce. Finally, it is establishing new 2020 sustainability goals to reduce greenhouse gas intensity by 50% and toxic air emissions intensity by 75% from its 2010 baseline.

"Our new sustainability goals are ambitious and impactful. Importantly, they are made more achievable by these large scale renewable energy actions and by partnering with leading providers of solar photovoltaic systems to continue our leadership in this area," said Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer Frank O'Brien-Bernini. He said that the wind energy deal will generate the equivalent electricity to power more than 65,000 US homes and support the wind power industry by enabling the construction of new wind power assets, a market to which the company supplies high performance glass fibre reinforcements for wind turbine blades. "Our new greenhouse gas reduction goal is informed by science-based methodologies that are designed to reduce carbon emissions enough to limit global warming to less than 2°C compared to pre-industrial temperatures," said O'Brien-Bernini. "We have taken an important step in aligning our goals consistent with the scientific consensus on what's needed."

US: Johns Manville (JM) was recently honoured with the 24-Karat Gold Challenge Award by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment for 'above and beyond' efforts in creating and implementing a programme that has made a measurable contribution to the environment, the economy and society. JM was nominated to receive the award by 97 Gold Leader peer companies within the Environmental Leadership Programme.

The Environmental Leadership Programme, administered by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, recognises organisations that go beyond compliance with environmental regulations and strive toward a goal of sustainability. Members work through three levels of partnership: Bronze, Silver and Gold. Programme membership stands at 160 organisations, representing a variety of sectors from manufacturing and agriculture to schools and service providers.

JM was presented with the 24-Karat Gold Challenge Award at an annual awards dinner on 16 October 2015. It won the award thanks to recent activities at the Johns Manville / Industrial Insulation Group manufacturing facility in Fruita, Colorado. Staff reinvented, redesigned and reconstructed its manufacturing process, resulting in the elimination of approximately 863t/yr of material from landfill waste by diverting that material into a new energy-conserving product stream. As a result, the facility eliminated 40 years of reliance on a 12,141m2 waste impoundment complex. Additionally, the product made from this reclaimed material is conservatively estimated to reduce end user CO2 emissions by over 270,000t/yr of CO2.

According to Fred Stephan, Senior Vice President of JM's Insulation Systems business, a team of employees from Fruita and Denver proposed and implemented the changes and truly exceeded everyone's expectations. "The team really did an outstanding job," said Stephan. "In the process of meeting our environmental requirements, they were able to make our manufacturing process more efficient and productive. Their hard work, as well as their perseverance, has been very impressive."

US: Installed Building Products' (IBP) net revenue grew by 29.3% year-on-year to US$182m in the third quarter of 2015. Same-branch sales increased by 8.4%, attributable to higher volume, price gains and a more favourable project mix. Operating income increased by 43.2% to US$15.5m.

In July 2015, Installed Building Products acquired Stamford, Connecticut-based EcoLogic Energy Solutions, enhancing the company's presence in the Connecticut, New York and Northern New Jersey markets. In August 2015, it acquired New Jersey-based Eastern Contractor Services, operating as Parker Insulation and Building Products in Southeastern Texas, enhancing its presence in New Jersey, the New York metropolitan area and Texas.

"We successfully executed our growth-oriented business strategy in the third quarter of 2015, which continues to produce strong financial results," said Jeff Edwards, Chairman and CEO. "Revenues grew by US$41m, or 29.3%, for the 2015 third quarter as a result of a US$11.7m increase in organic revenues and a US$29.4m increase in revenues from recent acquisitions. The housing market continues to recover in 2015 driven by growth in housing permits, starts, and completions. During the third quarter of 2015, we continued to increase sales organically, above the pace of single-family completions. Acquisitions remain an important part of our business strategy and during 2015 we have acquired US$85m of annual revenues, which are quickly contributing to both revenues and earnings."

US: Having outgrown its offices in Mebane, North Carolina, insulation manufacturer Armacell is relocating its American headquarters to Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Armacell's Americas headquarters has been located in Mebane for the past 15 years. The company produces insulation materials used in fire protection, product padding and noise control products. Its parent company, Armacell International Holding GmbH, is based in Germany.

Jodi Cheek, General Manager of Human Resources for Armacell's Americas region, said that the move would free up space in the Mebane facility for its customer service, research and development and technical support staff. Armacell's Mebane facility encompasses more than 444,000ft² of building space, including a manufacturing facility, warehouse, research and development space and offices.

US: Owens Corning's net sales increased by almost 6% year-on-year in the third quarter of 2015, led by an 11% increase in insulation sales.

Owens Corning reported US$1.46bn in net sales during the third quarter of 2015, up from US$1.38bn in the same period in 2014. This boosted its sales by 1.7% year-on-year in the first nine months of 2015. Sales of insulation composites and roofing all increased in the third quarter. Ownes Corning's net earnings in the third quarter of 2015 were US$112m, up from US$52m in 2014. Insulation earnings before income tax grew for a 17th consecutive quarter. Insulation sales jumped from US$454m in the third quarter of 2014 to US$502m in the third quarter of 2015, an 11% improvement. For the year, insulation sales have increased by 6%.

"Owens Corning had a very strong quarter, as all three businesses made substantial contributions to earnings," said Mike Thaman, Chairman and CEO. "Our businesses performed at double-digit margin levels as a result of positive macro trends and strong commercial and operational execution."

Owens Corning expects to benefit from continued improvement in the US housing market and global growth. Growth in new US residential construction should continue to help the insulation business, with revenue growth of about 10% in the second half of 2015.

US: Distribution International Inc (DI), a leading distributor and fabricator in the mechanical insulation market, has acquired Selle Supply Company and sister company PBI Supply Inc, full-line distributors of insulation products and related construction materials, that specialises in the lamination of fiberglass insulation for metal buildings. Founded in El Paso, Texas, Selle and PBI Supply comprise the largest regional metal building insulation fabricator / distributor in the US.

"We at DI are eager to enter the metal building insulation market. During our strategic assessment of the metal building lamination space, our market research indicated that Selle and PBI are ranked highly for customer service and delivery performance, making the company an ideal platform from which to grow our national footprint. This acquisition is a significant milestone in the growth of our company and we look forward to being part of the metal building insulation industry and bringing the successful team from Selle / PBI into DI," said Celeste Mastin, CEO of Distribution International.

"DI's resources will enable us to expand our position in the industry, both improving our reach to new regional customers while better serving larger customers that have called upon us to supply them outside of our traditional footprint. Our philosophical alignment with DI makes us confident that we can do that while continuing our commitment to deliver the high quality products and services our customers have come to expect from us. We are excited for this partnership and we are proud to be part of DI's expansion into the metal building insulation market," said David Dzina, President and Co-Owner of Selle and PBI and former President of the National Insulation Association.