In August of 2017, 
Johns Manville Industrial Insulation Group (IIG), a global building products manufacturer and a Berkshire Hathaway company, will release the first, water-resistant calcium silicate in North America, called Thermo-1200™. This product will be globally available and will replace Thermo-12® Gold, Johns Manville Industrial Insulation Group’s current high-temperature calcium silicate product. Thermo-1200 offers the same thermal performance and corrosion-inhibiting properties as Thermo-12 Gold, only now it is also water-resistant.
Jack Bittner, Senior Product Manager for Johns Manville Industrial Insulation Group, explained that this new, water-resistant calcium silicate can be highly beneficial for contractors. “As a cementitious insulation, untreated calcium silicate can absorb water. This has historically put pressure on contractors to cover the insulation immediately after installation to protect it from any potential rainfall or moisture. This practice can have wide-reaching implications on the job site that drive up costs and reduce installation efficiency,” he said.
“This is where water-resistant Thermo-1200 has enormous potential. It is engineered to give contractors a little more breathing room during the installation because water will bead on the insulation’s surface, rather than soak into the insulation. This will allow contractors a little extra time to jacket the insulation during the installation process – even in moderate rainfall,” Bittner said.
Ames Kulprathipanja, PhD., the Innovation Leader for Johns Manville Industrial Insulation Group, pointed out that this is just one facet of the insulation that helps prevent corrosion. “Corrosion under insulation (CUI) is a major concern in the industrial industry. That’s why our product is still made with XOX Corrosion Inhibitor®. Thus, even if a small amount of water does happen to penetrate the water-resistant insulation, the corrosion inhibitors will still activate to help protect the surface of the system from corrosion,” he said.
According to Bob Wamboldt, Senior Vice President & General Manager of Insulation Systems at Johns Manville (JM), this new water-resistant calcium silicate is part of a larger effort at JM to offer innovative new insulation solutions. “Our industrial business is extremely important to JM, and we feel like there is an opportunity for us to help the insulation industry evolve by creating products like Thermo-1200. These types of one-of-a-kind solutions offer significant value to the contractors who install our products and to the facilities that use them,” Wamboldt said.
Thermo-1200 will be available from the plant in Fruita, Colo., facility beginning in August 2017 and from the Ruston, La., facility in October 2017. To learn more about Thermo-1200, please visit http://www.jm.com/thermo-1200.
About Johns Manville:
Johns Manville, a Berkshire Hathaway company (NYSE: BRK.A, BRK.B), is a leading manufacturer and marketer of premium-quality building and specialty products. In business since 1858, the Denver-based company has annual sales of approximately $3 billion and holds leadership positions in many of the key markets that it serves. Johns Manville employs approximately 7,000 people and operates 43 manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe and China. Additional information can be found at http://www.jm.com.
About Industrial Insulation Group (IIG):
Industrial Insulation Group (IIG) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Johns Manville (JM), a Berkshire Hathaway company and global building products manufacturer. IIG’s product line complements JM’s portfolio of insulation products, allowing JM to offer an even broader continuum of solutions that meet the insulation requirements for any project. IIG was formed in 2002 and manufactures a wide range of insulation products for use in industrial, commercial and fireproofing applications. The company offers a unique “good, better, best” portfolio of high-temperature insulation, ranging from mineral wool to perlite to calcium silicate. Each product is designed to meet the most-demanding applications. IIG employs approximately 400 people at five manufacturing operations in Brunswick, Georgia; Fruita, Colorado; Ruston, Louisiana; Phenix City, Alabama; and Houston, Texas.
