BRIELLE, NEW JERSEY - January 6, 2011 -- Commercial buildings use an enormous amount of energy - and money - in heating and cooling ever year. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the annual cost of heating the nation's commercial structures is more than $150 billion.

With roof surfaces that cover thousands of square feet, the roofs of retail, warehouse and office buildings can lose a massive amount of heat - or in warm climates, they can absorb the sun's rays.

By employing a combination of reflective roof coatings and spray-applied polyurethane foams, builders can achieve a single, unbroken blanket of insulation that effectively creates a sealed thermal bubble around the structure. Employing spray foam can also earn building owners LEED points, delivering economic and environmental value.

In a recent test case, Dow Building Solutions and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory retrofitted a metal building more than half a century old with spray foam insulation and high-performance roof coatings from Dow Chemicals.

"Every product selected for the retrofit project was carefully researched and chosen based on performance," said project desiger André Desjarlais in a press release. "The result is a building that looks brand new, exceeds ASHRAE energy efficiency code, and provides a consistent, comfortable working environment for the people conducting research inside."

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