FUJAIRAH Rockwool Factory (FRF), a subsidiary of Fujairah Building Industries (FBI), will promote the benefits of its mineral fibre insulation while projecting its new image at The Big 5 show.

The company produces rockwool products, used mainly for thermal and acoustic insulation and fire protection, which help cut down power consumption and offer effective fire resistance.

“Our focus this year will be to educate visitors on the importance of insulation,” says Thaler Hubert, general manager of FRF. “It is important to understand that a lot of energy can be saved by using insulation material.”

He continues: “Worldwide, 40 per cent of the energy produced is used in the building sector, but in the GCC, it is 50 per cent. If we look at the housing sector, 75.5 per cent of the energy is utilised by heating and cooling systems, 11.5 per cent for water heating, 11.5 per cent on household facilities and 1.5 per cent on lighting. Air-conditioning accounts for 50 per cent of the electricity consumption in the region and this can be reduced by 50 per cent if the buildings are insulated.”

FRF will also promote the non-combustible properties of rockwool at the show, supporting its efforts with a video of a fire test. “We will show how a house with rockwool insulation and another with foam insulation react when exposed to the same degree of fire. Without rockwool insulation, a fire can migrate more easily from one floor to the other, while the one with rockwool will take time, providing people more time to evacuate and also save their belongings.”

Rockwool has passed the Euro class test and has been classified as A1 for its zero contribution to flame spread and smoke propagation and non-combustibility, he points out.

FRF products are natural, not artificial, being made of rockwool, Obaid Alkendi, CEO of FBI, states. “Rockwool is considered one of the best – if not the best – raw material for insulation. It contains about 60 to 65 per cent silica that gives the product higher resistance to fire,” he adds.

FBI has been participating at The Big 5 show for more than three years. “Every year we showcase new products. This year we also want to focus on the new face of FRF and its recent achievements,” Alkendi says.

Among such achievements, FRF was named the ‘Global Insulation Plant of the Year, at the eighth Global Insulation Conference and Exhibition held in Germany in September. “The certificate has given us an incentive and obligation to work hard and produce the best quality. I am very proud of the achievement and take this as a challenge to do even better,” Alkendi says.

FRF is also setting up a rockwool information centre, which will hold seminars and educate people about the product, its benefits and applications. The centre will be operational in 2015.

FRF started operations as the UAE’s first rockwool manufacturer in 1982 with an annual capacity of 5,000 tonnes. In 2012, the company built a 90,000-sq-m factory in Al Hayl Industrial Area in Fujairah, which has provisions for future expansion.

Over the past three decades, FRF has invested in increasing its production capacity. Its capacity reached 27,000 tonnes in 2011 and is targeted to hit 35,000 tonnes to 42,000 tonnes in the next few years.

“The market in the region is large and we can plan accordingly to go up to 120,000 tonnes in the coming years if the markets continue to grow,” says Hubert. “We are also investing in manpower and training people.”

FRF products are used in both commercial and industrial applications for the insulation of power, desalination and petrochemical plants, refineries, drilling equipment, houses, offices, schools and factories. Its product range comprises:

• Preformed pipe sections conforming to ASTM C-547 and equivalent BS 3958-4 for the thermo-acoustic insulation and fire protection of pipe works operating at high temperatures. The pipe insulation is manufactured from long, non-combustible rock fibres with a high-performance binder and its combination of density, strength and excellent thermal conductivity at high operating temperatures ensure efficient insulation;

• Blankets conforming to ASTM C-553 and ASTM C-665, which can be faced on one or both sides to form firm but flexible multi-purpose insulating materials;

• Slabs, used for façade insulation, conforming to ASTM C-612 and equivalent BS 3958 Part 5. They are designed for thermal and acoustic insulation of flat or slightly curved surfaces operating at both high and low temperatures. These slabs are produced from long, non-combustible resin bonded fibres.

FRF’s main market is the UAE, which accounts for 60 per cent of its business, followed by Saudi Arabia (30 per cent) and other GCC states (10 per cent).

“While the UAE market is still good, we have witnessed an increase in demand from Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Oman,” says Hubert, adding that FRF’s quality products have also made inroads into China, North Africa and even Europe.

With the demand on the rise, Hubert says that all insulation manufacturers, including FRF are looking to increase capacities. “The market is very good for insulation companies, and price levels are good. We are currently the biggest insulation manufacturer in the GCC, and we want to be the market leader in rockwool insulation. As for quality, we are awaiting ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 certification and next year, we will have ISO 18000 for safety,” Hubert says.

“The ‘Global Insulation Plant of the Year’ award shows we are on the right track. The award has come at the right time as we have been working very hard and the results are very encouraging,” he concludes.

Fujairah Building Industries will be present at Stand A191 in Rashid Hall.