KIMMCO showcases the benefits of glasswool and rockwool insulation

Leminar in October hosted a technical seminar, in which representatives of KIMMCO showcased the company’s rockwool and glasswool insulation products. Leminar is the UAE agent for KIMMCO, which is part of the Insulation Group of Kuwait-headquartered Al Ghanim Industries. Leminar has been a KIMMCO agent for 20 years.

KIMMCO, which according to its representatives, achieves 35,000 metric tons/year of sales, has supplied to such projects as Princess Nora University, Saudi Arabia; Burj Khalifa, UAE; Dubai International Financial Centre, UAE; Dubai Metro, UAE; Al Hamra Tower, Kuwait; Burj Qatar and Tornado Tower, also in Qatar.

During the seminar, Shahid Khan, Vice President (Insulation Group), Al Ghanim Industries, said that rockwool was needed for industrial applications (boilers) in the Middle East. Dr Kailash Chandra, Senior Manager (Technical) at KIMMCO, added that insulation was a great way to fight global warming, whatever may be the form of insulation. He went on to say that several parameters dictated the choice of insulation material for a particular project – among them were the U Value and fire safety.

Dr Chandra, who made a detailed presentation on rockwool and glasswool, said that the two were resistant to fire, whereas other insulating materials reacted to fire. In addition, rockwool and glasswool also had good acoustic performance and, owing to their solid and tightly bound nature, boasted good thermal performance. An additional plus point about glasswool and rockwool was their environmentally friendly nature, Dr Chandra said, adding that glasswool was green, whereas foam and some other insulating materials were plastics and, by extension, involved the use of chemicals.

Khan, who also addressed the audience, pointed out to the high energy use in buildings and emphasised the need for good insulation. “Forty per cent of the world’s energy is used in buildings,” he said. “Cooling or heating to 22°C, plus or minus two, requires energy. Power plants produce energy, but they also release carbon into the atmosphere. You can save energy through insulation.”

Dr Chandra picked up the thread from Khan to say that insulation in HVAC saved energy, stopped condensation and reduced noise. Glasswool and rockwool, in particular, he claimed, came with additional benefits. The two insulating materials, he said, were available in flexible, semi-rigid and rigid forms; were light in weight and compressible; suitable for a wide range of temperatures (from -200°C to 800°C) and did not promote the growth of mould, bacteria and fungus.

Navin Valrani, the CEO of Leminar, also spoke on the occasion. Earlier, Khan had said that KIMMCO supplied its insulation materials to 44 countries. Referring to this, Valrani said that KIMMCO was the only Middle East brand Leminar represented, which manufactured in the region and competed at a global level.