Insulation industry news from Global Insulation

Denmark: Rockwool International A/S saw its net profit decline slightly to Euro16.5m in the three months to 30 June 2011 from Euro17.2m in the corresponding period of 2010.

Recovery in the company's main European insulation markets, driven by Germany and France, continued and considerable growth was marked in Poland and Russia as well.

Net sales went up to Euro845m from Euro452m. Operating costs expanded by 18% to Euro434m, which led to a reduction in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to Euro57.9m from Euro64.8m in the quarter.

Rockwool foresees that further sales growth will come in the coming quarters. Rockwool anticipates that its net profit after minority interests will be Euro73.8m for 2011.

US: Owens Corning's (OC) has registered second quarter profit of USD78m, down by 92% from USD937m in the same period of 2010. This was due to the absence of a tax benefit received in 2010. The group's revenue increased by 5.3% to USD1.45bn and its gross margin fell to 19.2% from 20.6%.

Its building materials business, its biggest contributor to the top line, saw revenue rise by 4% thanks to increased roofing sales volumes. This was partly offset by lower insulation sales volumes and the sale of its masonry products business. Its composites sales rose by 8%, mostly thanks to positive currency impacts and, to a lesser degree, higher prices.

OC has also announced that it has completed the acquisition of FiberTEK Insulation LLC and FiberTEK Insulation West LLC. The acquisitions include manufacturing locations in Lakeland, Florida and Nephi, Utah and expand the group's loosefill insulation capacity while strengthening the company's ability to serve North American customers.

Loosefill insulation is becoming more popular due to the increased prevalence of higher efficiency building codes that require increased levels of attic insulation and for its ease of use in energy-efficient retrofits. Unbonded loosefill insulation has grown its share in overall US light density residential fiberglass insulation sales in recent years and represents a success-story amid the broader US residential construction downturn.

"The acquisition of the FiberTEK companies is a great addition for OC and our customers," said Tom Quigley, OC's vice president and general manager for residential insulation. "These acquisitions position OC to serve our customers in this segment as the market returns. They also benefit existing FiberTEK customers by making available our entire array of insulation products, including our revolutionary EcoTouch^(TM) family of high-performance residential and light commercial insulation products." The FiberTEK acquisitions will also enable Owens Corning to expand growth opportunities for its EnergyComplete^(TM) insulation and air sealing system.

UK/Ireland: Roofing and insulation materials supplier SIG took the gloss off a strong first-half performance in 2011 by signalling a slowdown for the rest of the year. The company said that it still expects to make progress in 2011, but that growth will 'moderate' in the second half of the year due to a combination of tough comparative numbers and general economic factors.

The Sheffield-based group reported a slump in consumer spending in the UK and Ireland on areas such as home improvements. It said that reduced government spending was also putting pressure on public sector work.

Total revenues rose by 9% year-on-year to Euro1.57bn in the first half of 2011 with underlying profits 84% ahead at Euro38.3m. The company said that the UK and Ireland saw a 'noticeable softening in demand' towards the end of the second quarter of 2011.