Green thrust for building insulation

“With all new buildings being designed keeping in mind the requirements of ECBC norms laid by the BEE, the need for building insulation is bound to see exponential growth,” says Ashok Sharma, CEO, Macmillan Insulations Pvt. Ltd.
Macmillan is one of the leading players in the field of roof and duct insulations. Could you brief us on your business activities and products and solutions you offer to the market?Macmillan is a prominent name in the field of reflective insulation or import and supply of radiant heat and vapour barriers. These products are extensively used for under-deck roof insulation and vapour barrier in duct insulation.
You represent Fletcher Insulation of Australia in India. What are the range of solutions you offer under this brand?We import radiant heat and vapour barriers under brand names Sisalation, Flamestop and TuffStuff. Sisalation Flamestop 138 is an eight-layer double sided aluminium foil laminate with superior radiant heat reflective property for under-deck roof insulation. FS-138 is manufactured by extruding two layers of high strength kraft paper and two layers of aluminium foil and heat welding them together with a three way fibre glass reinforcing scrim and three layers of copolymer resins to form a perfectly sealed, scratch resistant laminate.
Sisalation Flamestop FSK 300 is a four-layer fire retardant single sided aluminium foil laminate used as vapour barrier for lamination to bulk insulation material. FLAMESTOP FSK 300 is bonded with co-polymer film that provides high scuff resistance and is not affected by moisture.
TuffStuff  460 consists of two layers of high quality aluminium foil bonded to a polymer-based weave using a flame retardant adhesive. TuffStuff 460 is recommended for use in light industrial and commercial applications including farm sheds and animal enclosures where a tough, economical, highly reflective surface is desired.
Tuffstuff by SisalationR Extra Heavy Duty Wall Wrap (Breather) is a single sided poly weave foil recommended for use as a wall wrap behind permeable light weight cladding for domestic and commercial buildings. Tuffstuff by Sisalation (Breather) is a very strong, tear resistant, vapour permeable membrane that prevents the build-up of trapped moisture between the cladding and foil when no air gap exists.
What is a radiant heat barrier and how it works?A Radiant Heat Barrier (RHB) is made of highly reflective metal, normally aluminium, and is reinforced with a middle fabric or kraft paper layer making it puncture and tear resistant unlike basic kitchen foil. Unlike mass insulation that merely slows down or resists the transfer of heat through conduction and convection mode of heat transfer, a RHB blocks the transfer of a large percentage, at least 90 per cent of radiant heat, to qualify to be called an RHB. RHB blocks radiant heat by reflecting it back towards the direction it came from as well as reduce transfer of heat through convective mode of heat transfer by acting as a physical blockage against convective air flow.  With an RHB properly installed, the amount of heat can be significantly reduced making a living space comfortable while reducing overall energy bills.
What are the advantages of using RHB?RHB is light weight (less than 200 gm per sq.m.) vis-à-vis other types of insulation. Due to light weight RHB can be installed as under-deck roof insulation in existing buildings without affecting operations. Being light weight, it doesn’t store heat like bulk insulation and keep releasing the same even after sun-set. Our RHB products are fire retardant.
Does insulation play any role in reducing environmental impact of a building?These days, the stress is on sustainable green buildings. The buildings are planned in such a way that the need for energy to take care of the HAVC requirements is minimised. Insulation plays a major role in making of energy efficient buildings.
Do you have any products to offer for green buildings?For a product to called green, it should be bio degradable and recyclable. The main constituents of our products like Flamestop 138 and Flamestop FSK 300 are bio degradable kraft paper and recyclable aluminium Foil. 
What is your outlook on the building insulation market space in India?With all new buildings being designed keeping in mind the requirements of Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC 2007) norms laid by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), the need for building insulation is bound to see exponential growth.
There are many players existing in your domain. What is the value proposition you offer to build a competitive edge?Unlike other players in the market, we take care of the RHB installation as well. We undertake installation job-work in existing buildings also.

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