Award-Winning Community Hospital Implements InsulBloc Spray Foam Insulation

MOUNT AIRY, NC - March 1, 2012 - When the new Clark County Regional Medical Center (CRMC) in Winchester, Kentucky opens it’s doors this spring it carries on a long tradition of commitment to the overall health of the community, and that commitment begins with the design, science, and advanced products used in building.

CRMC’s new $60 million, 133,675-square-foot hospital facility, which replaces the current 43-year old building, promotes a healthy experience through “ecologically responsible, energy efficient design,” including geothermal heating and cooling, and ultra-energy-efficient InsulBloc, the two-pound closed-cell spray foam (SPF) insulation by NCFI Polyurethanes of Mount Airy, North Carolina.

“The demand for SPF insulation is skyrocketing,” says Jim Hacker, field operations for Omni Fireproofing, the Fairfleld, Ohio firm chosen to insulate the CRMC facility. “We’ve been using spray foam for about 12 years, and the demand has really jumped recently.” 

Hacker says the overwhelming demand for schools and health care facilities like CRMC for InsulBloc is due not only to superior insulating qualities, but also because InsulBloc is one of the only products approved by the International Code Council (ICC) as an insulation, water barrier and air barrier. 

“It’s three products in one—provides exceptional energy efficiency, inhibits mold growth by preventing water entry, and improves indoor air quality by blocking pollens, mold, dust and airborne particulates. It also approved by the ABAA (Air Barrier Association of America).” Air leakage can result in an increased use in energy costs of up to 30-40 percent in heating climates and 10-15 percent on cooling costs. According to Hacker InsulBloc is “ideal for high performance buildings.”

Hacker says his firm chooses InsulBloc because of its high yield, ease of use, and NCFI’s great technical and customer support. He adds, “We used InsulBloc on the interior of all exterior metal stud walls of CRMC and InsulBloc helped us do the job quicker, which the GC appreciated, and the high yield saved on material costs which drops to everyone’s bottom line.”

Hacker predicts an even bigger future for the product, “We believe within 5-8 years all commercial buildings, with health care facilities and schools leading the way, will include spray foam insulation. It just makes sense.”

Mitch Clifton, NFCI’s director of business development, agrees with Hacker’s assessment of the demand for spray foam insulation. “We see the same, but the demand is not just for any SPF product. Architects and builders want products that add to the sustainability and health of the building, but they want products that are tested over time—through real world experience—and proven to work. Our 44-years-plus history as an American company pioneering research and development of SPF products gives us a definitive advantage when it comes to healthy building science. We are told that’s why so many architects, builders, and insulation specialists choose NCFI products.”

ABOUT NCFI: NCFI, headquartered in Mt. Airy, NC since 1964, manufactures polyurethane foam chemical systems for spray foam-in-place insulation (SPF), roofing, marine floatation, packaging, specialty molding, and many other uses. The company also offers a complete line of flexible foams for furniture seating, transportation seating, bedding, carpet underlay, and packaging. NCFI also has manufacturing plants in Hickory, NC, Dalton, GA, and Salt Lake City, UT. To learn more about NCFI please visit  www.NCFI.com.