Honeywell and Bayer Pearl Provide Spray Foam Insulation to Support Saudi Arabia’s Montreal Protocol Commitments

RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA – May 24, 2016 - Honeywell and Bayer Pearl have unveiled new spray foam insulation technology solutions that can improve energy efficiency in residential and commercial buildings in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

With 1.5 million new homes needed to keep up with local population growth, energy demand in the country is anticipated to double by 2030. In anticipation of this surge in demand, the Kingdom has introduced new thermal insulation requirements for all new buildings, which are designed to support energy conservation. This increased focus on efficiency supports the economic and sustainability goals contained within the Saudi Vision 2030, the Kingdom's 15-year plan aimed at building a prosperous and sustainable economic future.

Honeywell and Bayer Pearl brought together regulators, global industry experts, and regional stakeholders and contractors at a workshop this week in Riyadh to review how next generation polyurethane (PU) foam can meet the Kingdom's thermal insulation requirements. At the workshop, entitled "Sustainable Solutions for PU Foam," technology advancements such as spray foam systems with new blowing agent technology were discussed. Blowing agents allow closed-cell foam to expand and provide excellent insulating properties. A 2013 study by engineers at King Faisal University estimated that by applying both wall and roof insulation, energy usage can be reduced by up to 20 percent.

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Mohammed Al-Sahafi, Director General, Environmental Standards at the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment (PME) said: "We are working with several agencies to implement our national strategy for phasing out Ozone Depleting Substances as required under the Montreal Protocol."

"Saudi Arabia is planning to phase out HCFC-141b by January 1, 2018, per its commitments under the Montreal Protocol," said Khaled Klaly, Program Officer, United Nations Environment Program. "UNEP is assisting the Kingdom to adopt new, more energy efficient blowing agent technology which will help the nation meet its energy targets."

Solstice® Liquid Blowing Agent (LBA), is a highly efficient insulator and has an ultra-low global-warming-potential (GWP) of 1, which is 99.9 percent lower than the blowing agents it replaces and equal to carbon dioxide. It is a near drop-in replacement for other liquid foam blowing agents and is nonflammable, making it a cost-effective choice.

"Solstice® LBA is a fourth-generation blowing agent technology, which has been widely adopted around the world in many applications, such as commercial and residential appliance insulation, panel insulation and spray foam," said Amir Naqvi, regional marketing leader, Honeywell Fluorine Products. "We are delighted that Bayer Pearl has formulated their new spray foam system with Solstice® LBA and are encouraged that KSA leaders are considering implementing these new technologies to further enhance their economy and society."

"We first realized the potential of spray foam systems used with fourth-generation blowing agent technology in a Middle Eastern construction project we undertook in 2015", said José-Antonio Diaz-Lopez, Head of Application Development at Bayer Pearl – a subsidiary of material provider Covestro – in Dubai. "We continue to make use of Covestro's global network of R&D-centers and systems houses, in order to bring the most modern technologies to the Middle East".

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