Insulation industry news from Global Insulation

France: Multinational chemical producer Arkema has patented the use of Forane(R) 1233zd as a blowing agent in the manufacture of polyurethane foams. The new molecule, known in its development phase as AFA-L1, is high purity trans-1-chloro-3,3,3-trifluoropropene, a liquid halogenated olefin. It offers improvements in energy performance and environmental benefits over existing blowing agents.

"In all of these evaluations, in several different polyurethane foam applications, Forane(R) 1233zd blowing agent has consistently demonstrated outstanding ease of use," noted Nancy Storoz, Global Business Manager for Arkema fluorochemicals foams and 134a refrigerants, "It requires minimal equipment modifications and formulation changes, while outperforming HCFCs, HFCs and hydrocarbons in terms of energy efficiency, R value, and vapor pressure."

In trials at a manufacturer of household refrigerators and freezers, an unoptimised system based on Forane(R) 1233zd blowing agent delivered a 3% improvement in energy efficiency versus HFC 245fa and surpassed 2014 DOE energy standards. In other evaluations conducted by Arkema, Forane(R) 1233zd blowing agent provided a 6% improvement in insulation value versus HFC 245fa, a 7% improvement versus HCFC 141b, and a 16% improvement versus hydrocarbons.

Target markets for Forane(R) 1233zd blowing agent include polyurethane foams used in the manufacture of household refrigerators and freezers, commercial refrigeration, spray foam, and polyurethane panels for commercial and residential building and construction applications.

US/Canada: According to a survey by the North American Insulation Manufacturers Association (NAIMA), US producers used over 0.70Mt of recycled glass in the production of residential, commercial, industrial and air-handling thermal and acoustical insulation in 2012. Canadian members used around 0.14Mt of recycled glass. The survey investigated members' use of pre- and post-consumer recycled materials in insulation products in 2012.

US and Canadian facilities used over 0.22Mt of recycled blast furnace slag in the production of thermal and acoustical insulation. Since the industry's recycling programme began in 1992, NAIMA members' plants have diverted around 20Mt of recycled materials from the waste stream.

"NAIMA members are committed to promoting sustainability by using recycled materials to produce energy-saving insulation products that improve a building's energy efficiency and reduce environmental impact," said Kate Offringa, President and CEO of NAIMA.

US: Huntsman Corporation has announced that it has completed the acquisition of Oxid, a manufacturer and marketer of specialty urethane polyols in Houston, Texas, for an amount of up to US$75m. According to a press release, Oxid generated revenues of US$86m in 2012.

Oxid's polyols are a key component in the production of polyurethane-based insulation products. The polyols are combined with methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) in which Huntsman's Polyurethanes division is a producer to create polyurethane foam insulation. Oxid markets its product line of specialty polyols under the trademark Terol and distributes products worldwide from its manufacturing facility in Houston.

Commenting on the sale, Anthony P Hankins, President of Huntsman's Polyurethanes division, said, "We are very pleased with the acquisition of Oxid. In the past 18 months we have strengthened our downstream capabilities with the acquisition and establishment of new systems houses in Turkey, Russia and Indonesia; acquired a 20% stake in Nippon Aqua, a Japanese spray polyurethane foam insulation company; we've commissioned a new, state-of-the-art MDI splitter and downstream manufacturing unit in Rotterdam, the Netherlands; and we've invested in the expansion of our world-scale MDI manufacturing facility in Geismar, Louisiana, USA." He added that the acquisition would strengthen Huntsman's presence in insulation markets in North America and globally.

Denmark: Rockwool International has reported that its net sales rose by 2% year-on-year to Euro494m for the second quarter of 2013 that ended on 30 June 2013. It attributed the rebound to a recovery in the western European insulation market, especially in Spain, Italy and the UK.

The Danish insulation producer saw its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rise by 4% to Euro75.6m from Euro7.24m. Profit for the period rose by 8% to Euro26m from Euro24.1m.

In its income statement Rockwool explained that as well as improvements in western European markets it had also seen development in Poland and continued good sales in Russia. Sales in North American remained strong but sales in China disappointed the insulation producer, due to uncertain legislation on the mandatory use of non-mineral wool insulation.

As Reuters reported, from an interview with Rockwool CEO Eelco van Heel, China's changing legislation on non-mineral wool insulation lost the company an order for 25,000t of stone wool placed in late 2012. As a consequence, Rockwool is postponing the construction of a planned factory in China, where it acquired its first and so far only factory in 2010.

For its outlook for the remainder of 2013, Rockwool expects that its net sales will slightly surpass those of 2012.

UK: Superglass Holdings has reported in a period-end trading update that its financial year that ended on 31 August 2013 was in line with market expectations.

The mineral wool producer reported that sales volumes had been volatile throughout the summer of 2013 and overall market demand remained depressed, especially in the retrofit segment where the uptake of insulation measures under the Green Deal initiative remained very low. Insulation measures completed in 2013 under the Green Deal and the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) combined are running at between 80% and 90% below 2012 levels.

Superglass also announced the resignation of its Chief Finance Officer, Allan Clow, and the appointment of Declan George Billington as a non-executive Director.