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.”

US: CertainTeed has completed an upgrade at its Athens glasswool insulation plant in Georgia. Equipment used in the production of loose-fill insulation has been updated, including modifications to the unit’s loose-fill recycling machine. In addition, the plant has installed several new pieces of equipment, including a new baler, water sub-metering system, three air compressors, efficiency pumps on cooling towers and a cooling wind fan. The modifications are expected to save over 7300MWh/yr of energy and 76Ml/yr of water, and reduce landfill waste by over 5000t/yr.

Jay Bachmann, Vice President and General Manager of CertainTeed Interior Products Group, said “The work of our insulation plant in Athens is the perfect example of what sustainability looks like for industrial manufacturing operations, where a series of small changes brought together can make a huge impact. I want to thank the entire Athens team for their success.”

The subsidiary of Saint-Gobain North America previously announced in late 2021 that it was spending US$30m towards building a new insulation production line at the Athens plant. At the time it said that increased production was scheduled to start in late 2023.

US: Owens Corning’s sales of insulation grew by 2% year-on-year to US$1.82bn in the first half of 2023 from US$1.79bn in the same period in 2022. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 9.5% to US$427m from US$390m. The group noted that insulation sales fell year-on-year in the second quarter of 2023 due to lower volumes, although this was partially offset by price rises and changes to its product mix. Overall, the company’s composites sales fell in the first half of 2023, leading to a slight drop in sales to US$4.89bn and a decline of 4% in adjusted EBITDA to US$1.15bn.

Europe: Ireland-based Kingspan has signed an agreement with Germany-based wood products group Schramek to acquire a 51% stake in wood-based insulation producer Steico for an initial Euro251m. The Irish Times newspaper has reported that the group may pay more, if Steico reaches agreed-upon profitability thresholds. The agreement includes an option for Kingspan to also purchase a further 10% stake. Steico operates 27 insulation lines across four plants in Poland and France.

Kingspan CEO Gene Murtagh said “The acquisition of a majority stake in Steico represents an exciting next step in our strategy to provide the full spectrum of insulation products. Its suite of wood-based building envelope solutions broadens our ability to enable our customers to meet their sustainability and energy performance needs. Kingspan’s global routes to market, paired with our drive to innovate and widen the applications of Steico’s current technologies, are key to our plans to bring Steico bio-based solutions to the next level.”