Insulation industry news from Global Insulation

Denmark: Belgium-based Etex has completed its acquisition of Skamol, a producer of calcium silicate and vermiculite high-temperature insulation systems.

Etex's head of passive fire protection and high-performance insulation Tanguy Vanderborght said "We warmly welcome Skamol and its 300 teammates within Etex. Joining forces with them strengthens Etex’s position and will accelerate our growth in the high temperature insulation market where we already are a key player with Promat. With our combined expertise in complementary technologies, we will gain scale to extend our geographic reach and expand our offering to our combined customer base.”

Ireland: Kingspan recorded sales of US$2.21bn during the first quarter of 2023, up by 4% year-on-year from first-quarter 2022 levels, Reuters has reported. The producer said that group insulation sales remained in line year-on-year. Insulated panel sales remained ‘sluggish,’ but constituted 25% of all orders. By region, sales were ‘strong’ in the Americas and ‘solid for the most part’ in Western Europe, while conditions ‘remained tough’ in Central and Eastern Europe. Kingspan forecast first-half earnings of US$441m in 2023.

The company proposed its future delisting from the UK-based London Stock Exchange, where it says current share trading is ‘negligible as percentage of total trading.’

Serbia: Knauf Insulation Serbia has completed a Euro20m upgrade to its Surdulica stone wool plant. Production has restarted at the unit, according to SeeNews. The company has replaced equipment on the production line and chimney, and installed a new palletisation machine and a desulfurisation system, thereby increasing the recycling capacity of the factory. The investment also includes a new logistics building and a truck parking area. The company plans to hire 15 new employees from May 2023 to support the changes.

UK: Around 900 people have reached a settlement at the High Court related to civil claims following the fire at Grenfell Tower in 2017. A total settlement figure of Euro170m has been set by the court, according to ITV News. However, the civil claim will have no determination on the ongoing public inquiry into the fire and any potential future criminal charges.

Both cladding company Arconic and insulation producer Celotex have been part of the various civil legal cases. Celotex, a subsidiary of Saint-Gobain, said that “without admission of liability” it had agreed to make a financial contribution towards the settlement. It added that, “Celotex and the Saint-Gobain Group reaffirm their deepest sympathies to everyone affected by the fire.” Kingspan has also confirmed its involvement in civil cases relating to the fire at Grenfell Tower in a statement reported upon by Building magazine.

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.