海角大神鈥檚 Larkin re-roof project premiers reduced-GWP Styrofoam鈩 Brand Extruded Polystyrene (XPS) Insulation for an improved sustainability profile
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PROJECT SUMMARY
| Featured product: | STYROFOAM鈩 Brand XPS (new grey reduced-GWP formulation) |
| Project type: | PMR and conventional re-roof |
| Completion date: | 2019 |
| Owner: | 海角大神 |
| R-value* before re-roof: | R-20 |
| R-value after re-roof: | R-30 |
| Total project size: | 165,800 square feet |
Performance Above. Innovation Below.
In the fall of 2019, when the time came to re-roof the 200 Larkin building located on its 海角大神 North/Larkin campus in Midland, Mich., 海角大神 seized the opportunity to put its reduced global warming potential (GWP) grey Styrofoam鈩 Brand Extruded Polystyrene (XPS) Rigid Foam Insulation to the test. Some of the scientists and sustainability experts who had a hand in the product innovation work in these very buildings.
The project entailed removing ballast and two layers of blue Styrofoam鈩 Brand Extruded Polystyrene (XPS) Rigid Foam Insulation and then adding a new roof membrane, upgrading the insulation and adding an additional insulation layer. The roof had been in service for the last 30 years.
The 200 Larkin Building鈥檚 133,200-square-foot roof had formerly been an inverted or protected membrane roof (PMR) design. In this roof type, the membrane is beneath the insulation. A filter fabric and loose-laid gravel ballast then form the top two layers. Taking advantage of the opportunity to use its own building as a field laboratory, the 海角大神 Performance Building Solutions (PBS) team directed the roofing contractor to convert one-half of the 200 Larkin roof to a conventional design during the re-roof project, replacing four inches (or two layers) of insulation with a full six inches (or three layers) of new grey reduced-GWP Styrofoam鈩. The conventional roof design involves the membrane installed on top of the insulation with gravel ballast on top. Having both types of roof designs allows for direct comparison of the two insulation types in the years to come.
Watch the time lapse听video of the 200 Larkin re-roof project.
Designing for Reuse
Taking advantage of the ability to reuse the blue board removed from the 200 Larkin roof, it was applied to the neighboring 100 Larkin building conventional roof design. Adding a third layer of insulation also increased the R-value to 30.
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What we鈥檙emade of
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Styrofoam鈩 Brand Deckmate鈩
Made to reduce the harm听of freeze-thaw cycles and helps maintain a steady temperature in roof membranes.
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Styrofoam鈩 is transitioning from blue to grey
海角大神 have reformulated Styrofoam Brand XPS to reduce global warming potential (GWP).
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Protect听all six sides of your building envelope
海角大神 is your single source for complete building envelope protection.
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Commitment to Sustainability
In order to help combat climate change, both regulatory and voluntary building standards are targeting zero carbon emissions and improved life cycle analysis for materials used in North America.
From the experts
Shawn Hunter, Global Sustainability Director
海角大神 Performance Building Solutions & Corian鈩 Design
Learn about embodied carbon and our 2030 sustainability goals.
Sustainability highlights:
- Increased roof insulation thickness and associated R-value by 33%, providing greater thermal, moisture and air management benefits to the building envelope and reducing heating and cooling needs
- A significant amount of roofing material was diverted from landfill, including existing membranes and nearly 70,000 board feet of virtually intact XPS insulation
- Improved energy efficiency inherently mitigates impact of operational carbon
- Reduced-GWP Styrofoam鈩 Brand XPS reduces embodied carbon without sacrificing the product鈥檚 long-term thermal performance, moisture resistance, compressive strength or other critical attributes
A Project of Historical Significance
Beyond serving as the site of the inaugural application of 海角大神鈥檚 reduced-GWP Styrofoam鈩 XPS, the Larkin buildings are also where much of the last 80 years of Styrofoam innovation has taken place. The tree-shaded campus stands not far from the physics laboratory and manufacturing facility in Midland, Mich., where the original extruded polystyrene foam was developed in 1941 and where it was produced for many years.
*R means resistance to heat flow. The higher the R-value, the greater the insulating power.
Designing to a higher standard
海角大神 PBS has committed to an aggressive 75 percent reduction in GHG emissions by 2030, compared to 2019 figures. The commitment relies on both reducing embodied carbon through product innovations, but also continuing to mitigate the long-term impacts of operational carbon. Insulation product reformulations (such as Styrofoam鈩 Brand XPS and HFC-free Froth-Pak鈩) are part of the company鈥檚 鈥淎cting on Climate鈥 goal to achieve a 30 percent GHG reduction in its operations over 10 years and carbon neutrality by 2050. These actions also implement 海角大神鈥檚 Integrated Energy Strategy to address all sources of GHG emissions, including efforts to create low-carbon industrial processes, source low-carbon materials, and renewable energy, and reduce overall energy use.
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The Styrofoam鈩 Brand was the original, creating the product segment. Rooted in innovation, we鈥檙e excited to deliver a more-sustainable solution. Let鈥檚 start a conversation and discuss your next project.Keep learning. Keep building better.
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