European Industrial Insulation Foundation

European Industrial Insulation Foundation - EiiF is a Swiss-based non-profit organisation established in 2009. Its Founders are ten insulation companies and the European contractors association FESI. The EiiF office is located in Geneva, Switzerland.

The EiiF’s core purpose is to promote industrial and technical insulation as a key means of delivering sustainability for industry. Crucial to this mission is to demonstrate the close link between sustainability and profitability i.e. insulation drives sustainability as well as profitability in terms of reduced CO2 emissions, reduced energy loss and fuel use.

EiiF membership is open to all insulation-related enterprises. This includes technical insulation material or service providers, as well as related engineering and plant designing companies which need or provide sustainable insulation systems.

Foundation purpose

The EiiF represents a new step for such companies, which have never previously come together in this way:
The purpose of the foundation is to engage "itself throughout Europe, exclusively and irrevocably, on a non-profit basis for the deployment of sustainable insulation systems in industrial plants and in the industrial environment with the aim of saving energy, reducing CO2 emissions and realizing the best possible noise and fire control systems.
The primary task of the Foundation is to publicize the potential of sustainable insulation solutions with policy makers from the economic and political field and, through consultation as well as education and further training, to initiate the implementation of concrete projects. Here, energy-saving potentials as well as health aspects and work safety should be considered."(Article 2, EiiF Deed of Foundation)

Background

Industry worldwide consumes about 26% of the world's energy and produces about 50% of all CO2 emissions. Experts know there is great potential to reduce these emissions by implementing sustainable insulation systems.

However, unlike in the building sector, technical insulation remains vastly underused and misunderstood by industry and government. Most crucially, industry and government is not sufficiently aware that insulation will save huge amounts of money by reducing CO2 emissions and energy wastage.

Case studies

Studies from the Netherlands Centre for Industrial Insulation (NCTI) indicate that just by moderately insulating between 5% and 10% of the EU’s least energy efficient oil refineries, annual energy costs worth 3.5 billion Euros and 20 million tonnes of CO2 could be saved. These massive savings are equivalent to the energy consumption and emissions caused by two million households. In less than two months, a 500 million Euro investment would be paid back. Outside Europe for example in the US, where the number of refineries with little or no insulation is 2½-to 5 times greater, the potential is even greater.

Another study shows that the average heat loss of a coal-fired power plant with a capacity of 1100 MW and an insulated surface of approximately 300.000m2 can be reduced by 25 percent.

This saves around 25,500 tonnes of coal every year, reducing annual CO2 emissions by 27,000 tonnes. This is roughly equivalent to 12,890 cars with an annual mileage of 15,000 km. In financial terms, this would enable the plant operators to produce added power equivalent to 4.8 million euros.

Activities

The EiiF’s primary task is to communicate the potential of sustainable insulation solutions to policy makers from the industrial, economic and political fields.

To this end it organizes lectures, presentations and seminars, forums and debates. It also communicates its views and findings via newsletters, scientific and architectural magazines. Much of this activity takes place in collaboration with national and international associations with similar objectives such as FESI (European Insulation Contractors Associations) and EURIMA (European Insulation Manufacturer Association) or the NIA Foundation (National Insulation Association/US). In addition, institutes such as the NCTI (Netherlands Centre for Technical Insulation), FIW (Forschungsinsitut für Wärmeschutz München e.V.), or governmental initiatives like SenterNovem, are welcome partners.

At a more practical level, the EiiF is currently working closely with insulation institutes to develop sophisticated evaluation programmes which analyze the extent to which insulation systems and materials can improve or deliver sustainable profitability at specific industrial sites.

At a wider environmental level, the EiiF’s Deed of Foundation incorporates a commitment to the promotion of nature conservation and environmental protection.

Founding Partners

The EiiF Founders are: Armacell GmbH, Bilfinger Berger Industrial Services AG, Cape plc, Foamglas/Pittsburgh Corning Europe S.A./N.V., G + H Isolierung GmbH, Hertel Holding B.V., KAEFER Isoliertechnik GmbH & Co.KG, Kaimann GmbH, Rockwool Technical Insulation B.V., Saint-Gobain Isover S.A. and FESI (European Insulation Contractors Associations).