Insulation industry news from Global Insulation

Denmark: Qubiqa has acquired robotics company CH System. The purchase will see it to gain access to several new business areas such as food handling, pharmaceutical handling and so-called ‘Power-to-X’ energy conversion applications. The move will increase Qubiqa’s staff by 70 persons.

Axel Manøe Jepsen, chair of Qubiqa, said "Today, close to 90% of our activities are within our core business for the insulation industry. Strategically, CH System fits ideally with our ambition to expand our business areas and ensure that we are more broadly based in several markets. We believe that the acquisition strengthens the future of both companies."

Prior to the acquisition, Qubiqa had 240 employees divided between sales, administration, engineering and production in Esbjerg as well as production in Poland. The company develops and produces automated packaging solutions for the insulation manufacturers around the world.

CH System was established in 1968. It produces handling and packaging systems for a variety of industries including the food packaging, mineral wool handling and biomass handling sectors.

UK: SIG recorded US$1.81bn in sales in the first half of 2023, up by 5% year-on-year from US$1.73bn in the first half of 2022. The group noted a decline in its sales volumes, partly offset by positive tailwinds from cost inflation in the comparison period. Its profit after tax declined by 70% to US$5.98m from US$20.2m.

CEO Gavin Slark said “Our performance in the first half of 2023 reflects the challenging market conditions we are currently facing, with the group’s like-for-like revenue growth flat year-on-year. Despite these conditions, I’m very pleased with the progress we are making on many fronts to improve the business notably with the initiatives across our operating companies to improve our ability to drive higher levels of profitable growth when market conditions recover." Slark continued “Looking ahead, while we expect market conditions in the second half of 2023 to remain difficult, we remain confident the business will grasp the opportunities it has to continue to improve its underlying operational performance. This will, in turn, deliver higher levels of profitability as we drive towards our medium-term margin target of 5%. The group is financially and commercially well placed to drive meaningful shareholder value in the medium and long term.”

US: Owens Corning is planning to close its fibreglass insulation plant at Eloy in Arizona due to poor residential housing market conditions. The Casa Grande Dispatch newspaper reports that the company’s decision was announced at a local council meeting in late July 2023. The Eloy plant was in operation for 15 years before being previously closed in 2010. However, in late 2021 the company announced plans to restart production at the unit. The closure will entail 36 job losses.

US: Sales revenue from Huntsman’s polyurethane division fell by 27% year-on-year to US$2.00bn in the first half of 2023 from US$2.74bn in the same period in 2022. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) dropped by 66% to US$154m from US$453m. For the second quarter of 2023 the company attributed falling revenue to lower sales volumes, decreased average methyl diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) prices and negative currency exchange effects. This trend was partially offset by higher equity earnings from a minority-owned joint venture in China and cost savings achieved from a cost saving plan.

Overall the group’s sales and earnings fell in the first half of 2023 with declines in sales and earnings reported across all main divisions. However, the company noted that it saw, “demand fundamentals in many of our core markets stabilise” in the second quarter of 2023.
Huntsman produces a range of chemicals including polyisocyanurate (PIR) and polyurethane (PUR) building insulation products.

US: Installed Building Products’ revenue grew by 7% year-on-year to US$1.35bn in the first half of 2023 from US$1.26bn in the same period in 2022. Its net income rose by 18% to US$111m from US$93.7m. Jeff Edwards, chair and chief executive officer, said that company “focused on prioritising profitability over volume.” He added “Despite softer volume trends in our single-family end market, the effort of our employees in the field across end markets translated into record second-quarter revenue, net income and earnings per share.”