Gold for green: Sustainable energy efficiency with insulbar RE

Ensinger's insulating profile made of 100 % recycled polyamide receives the Cradle to Cradle Material Health Certificate in gold

Nufringen (Germany), December 14, 2017 - Saving energy, reducing CO2 emissions, conserving resources – Ensinger was early to recognize the signs of the times. By 2013, the plastics specialist was the first manufacturer to launch a recycled insulating profile for the thermal separation of aluminum windows, doors and façades. Since then, insulbar RE has been providing additional points for the certification of buildings worldwide with its Environmental Product Declaration. Its outstanding sustainability is now additionally confirmed by a Cradle to Cradle Material Health Certificate in gold.

“With this certification, we are sending out a further signal that the ecological footprint of our products and the conservation of resources are of great importance to us. We only have this one planet,” says Jan Danger, division head for insulbar at Ensinger. “We were the first to go into series production with an insulating profile for metal frames in 1977. With insulbar RE made of pure recycling material, we combine energy efficiency and sustainability and once again support the building industry as a pioneer in climate protection.”

Doubly climate-friendly

During product evaluation by testing institutes such as EPEA, the entire value-added chain is considered in accordance with the principles of the Circular Economy – from cradle to recycling. The verified sustainability and the eco-balance of the product, which is certified with the Cradle to Cradle Material Health Certificate and the EPD, pays off with building certification, be it according to DGNB, LEED, BREEAM or country-specific regulations such as HQE in France or GBCe in Spain.

With insulbar RE, we offer our partners in window, door and façade construction a strong differentiating feature, an added value that we want to further expand together,” says Jan Danger of Ensinger. “The manufacturing process is clean, the solution has been tried and tested millions of times and the transition is easy. Existing tools can be reused unchanged and without additional costs. We offer our customers a wide variety of standard designs and individual profiles.”.

Sustainable quality

Ensinger has more than 50 years of experience in compounding and precision processing of specialty plastics. For the production of insulbar RE, pure polyamide recyclate from reliable sources is upgraded in a special upcycling process so that its properties are directly comparable with new material (suitability tested according to DIN EN 14024 by the ift Rosenheim, certified by CSTB and SKZ). The service life of the high-quality material is thus extended by a further product life cycle.

The use of recycled material in the production of insulbar RE reduces the consumption of fossil fuels by 89 % compared to the conventional polyamide profile, CO2 emissions are 84 % lower and 32 % less water is consumed. The material properties are checked in every phase of the process and documented according to DIN ISO 9001:2008. That is why insulbar RE has the same high quality, durability and functional reliability as known from classic insulating profiles.

For more information, go to the website: www.insulbar-re.de/en.

Figs. 1: insulbar RE is available in a wide range of profile variants and comes with an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD). The insulation profile made of pure recycled polyamide has now also been awarded a Cradle to Cradle Material Health Certificate in gold. The attestations secure bonus points for the certification of buildings, e.g. in accordance with DGNB, LEED, BREEAM and others. Picture credits: Ensinger GmbH

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Figs. 2: insulbar RE is available in a wide range of profile variants and comes with an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD). The insulation profile made of pure recycled polyamide has now also been awarded a Cradle to Cradle Material Health Certificate in gold. The attestations secure bonus points for the certification of buildings, e.g. in accordance with DGNB, LEED, BREEAM and others. Picture credits: Ensinger GmbH

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Fig. 3: Milestones in the development of insulbar insulating profiles for the metal frames of windows, doors and façades. Picture credits: Ensinger GmbH

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About insulbar

Ensinger GmbH is among the world’s leading developers and producers of insulating profiles for window, door and façade construction. The profiles marketed under the brand name insulbar® create a thermal separation between the inside and outside shells of metal frames. Insulation systems using insulbar profiles achieve optimum values in terms of energy savings and cutting the cost of heating and cooling. At the same time, insulbar profiles comply with the most stringent quality standards in every respect. They have been in successful operation around the world for 40 years. For more information, go to www.insulbar.de/en

About Ensinger

The Ensinger group is engaged in the development, manufacture and sale of compounds, semi-finished materials, profiles and technical parts made of engineering and high-performance plastic. Ensinger makes use of a number of different manufacturing methods, in particular extrusion, machining and injection moulding. Employing a total workforce of 2,400 in 33 locations, the family firm is represented in many important industrial regions of the world with its own production plants or sales branches. For more information, go to www.ensingerplastics.com