Insulation industry news from Global Insulation

South Korea: KCC has signed a memorandum of understanding with the local government in Gimcheon concerning an upgrade to its glass wool plant. The company plans to invest around US$75m on building a second production line at the unit by the end of 2023. The project follows a similar upgrade at the Munmak glass wool plant in 2022.

UK/Ireland: Knauf Insulation UK & Ireland has launched ‘OmniFit Slab 32’, a 32 lambda glass mineral wool insulation slab product for use in light steel frame systems (SFS) as part of a rainscreen façade or other external wall build-ups.

Liliya Luke, the Glass Mineral Wool Product Manager at Knauf Insulation, said “We have launched OmniFit Slab 32 to help our customers deliver the low U-values required, without compromising on fire safety, acoustic performance or sustainability.” He added, “Specifiers can now optimise their rainscreen façade systems by adding the benefits of glass mineral wool to their build-up - delivering acoustic performance, and reduced embodied carbon compared to rock-only solutions, with an insulation specification that remains completely non-combustible.”

The new product is primarily designed for use with ‘Rocksilk RainScreen Slab’ when used in rainscreen applications, and is suitable for use in the external wall systems of all residential buildings over 11m tall and relevant residential buildings over 18m tall. It is the latest addition to Knauf Insulation's OmniFit range of glass mineral wool roll and slab products.

Finland/Spain: Finland-based UPM Biochemicals and Spain-based URSA have developed a new type of glass wool insulation that uses a proprietary lignin-resin binder. The companies have worked together to optimise the binder composition for both performance and smooth runnability on URSA’s production lines. UPM Biochemicals says that UPM BioPiva lignin is a “sustainably produced, cost-effective and versatile raw material that has proven valuable in the creation of many value-added industrial applications, especially in lignin-based phenolic resins.”

Christian Hübsch, Director Sales & Marketing at UPM Biochemicals said “We are thrilled about having reached this milestone together with our partners from URSA, as it marks a potentially disruptive innovation for the insulation materials industry in general, and a great achievement for URSA with its long-held vision to go green and to reduce the carbon footprint of its products,”

Wolfgang Marka, Managing Director of URSA-Adria, added “We undertook long-term studies with UPM Biochemicals to assess the viability of replacing synthetic resins with a new bio-based binder and we are excited to produce one of the most sustainable glass wool insulation materials available.”

UPM Biochemicals develops and sells wood-based biochemicals for use in a variety of industries including insulation. It is building an industrial-scale biorefinery in Leuna, Germany to convert solid wood into biochemicals.

URSA produces both mineral wool and extruded polystyrene (XPS) insulation products in Europe. It is a subsidiary of Etex.

Malaysia: Knauf Insulation APAC’s Johor Bahru mineral wool plant has made its first export of unfaced glass wool to Japan. The company said that it has obtained Certification for Japanese Industrial Standards and is now able to begin supplying customers in that market. The 75,000t/yr Johor Bahru plant officially opened in mid-2022. However, the unit reportedly started export glass wool products to Australia in 2021.

South Korea: KCC started commercial production on an upgraded glass wool line at its Munmak plant in December 2022. It held a ceremony attended by chair Chung Mong-jin to mark the event. The new production line has a production capacity of 35,000t/yr and has increased the plant’s total glass wool capacity to 100,000t/yr across three lines.

The Munmak plant was originally commissioned in 1997. It then added a second production line in 2002 and a third in 2003. Overall KCC has a total glass wool production capacity of 130,00t/yr, including its Gimcheon plant. A new production line is also being built at Gimcheon. Once completed in the second half of 2023 the company’s total capacity will reach 180,000t/yr.

Belarus/Russia: US-based Owens Corning has agreed to sell its Belarusian and Russian assets to materials and technologies company Umatex. Umatex is a subsidiary of Russian state-owned nuclear power provider Rosatom. World Service Wire News has reported that the assets in question include the Gus-Khrustalny glasswool plant in Vladimir Oblast and the Tver mineral wool insulation plant in Tver Oblast, both in Russia.

Owens Corning chair and CEO Brian Chambers said "This announcement represents the final step in our process to fully exit our operations in Russia. I would like to thank our colleagues in Russia for their contributions to our company and customers over the years."

UK: Knauf Insulation has concluded a deal to acquire the Pilkington Architectural site next to its glass wool plant in St Helens. The purchase of the seven hectare area is part of a combined Euro46m production capacity expansion project at both the St Helens and Cwmbran plants that was previously announced in April 2022. At the St Helens plant the company plans to use the additional space storage space and better logistics arraignments.

Romania: Knauf Insulation will invest Euro135m in expanding its Târnăveni glass wool insulation plant and building a new adjacent plant at the site. Knauf Insulation says that the major expansion will advance the Romanian government's 'energy savings offensive' by supporting a renovation drive for the country’s housing stock. The government aims to increase the national area of modern renovated properties by a factor of six, with a Euro30bn allocation from its Recovery and Resilience Fund.

Germany-based Knauf's managing partner Alexander Knauf said “The commitment demonstrates our trust and confidence in the country and our employees. We look forward to becoming part of the local community. Together, we are setting new standards for building and living in Romania.”

Operations at the original Târnăveni glass wool insulation plant recently recommenced following a Euro4m upgrade by Knauf Insulation, which completed its acquisition of the plant in May 2022. Previous owner Gecsat produced insulation at the site from 2008.

France: Saint-Gobain subsidiary Isover has begun construction of a prototype glass wool recycling plant in Chemillé-en-Anjou. Contractor Eiffage Génie Civil is executing the project, which is scheduled for commissioning in 2023.

Isover France and Switzerland technical director Jérôme Saulnier saud "The realisation of this revolutionary industrial prototype with fusion by immersed burners will make it possible to recycle glass wool in industrial quantities, transforming it into cullet. This cullet will be used in the manufacturing process of our insulating products and will also reduce our energy consumption, our carbon emissions and improve the life cycle of our products."

US: Knauf Insulation has appointed Valentin Salazar as the manager of its forthcoming glass wool insulation plant at McGregor in Texas. Other hires include Alex Garcia as Health, Safety & Environmental Manager and JT Tristan as Human Resources Manager. Crossland Construction was previously announced as the general contractors for the project in July 2022. The company expects to open its new unit in early 2024.