Pink Batts – A new era in green
Australia’s unique Pink Batts have set a new era in greener manufacturing with the commissioning of advanced, home grown efficient furnaces, and other sustainability measures at Australia’s largest glasswool insulation manufacturing facility in Dandenong.
Along with its considerable emissions reductions, the Fletcher Dandenong plant incorporates energy savings, more than 70% recycled glass content in the insulation manufactured as well as significant rainfall harvesting and recycling of process water used in production.
The Honourable Gavin Jennings MLC, Minister for Climate Change, the Environment and Innovation commissioned the Intech glass melting furnaces during a launch held at the Pink Batts manufacturing facility on 3 of October.
The indigenous Intech furnace technology was developed in Australia for use in the manufacture of glasswool insulation for the building and automotive industry.
Due to its good environmental credentials and manufacturing efficiencies, the Intech furnace technology has been sold to manufacturers from around the world.
In North America this includes the largest international insulation manufacturer, Owens Corning who is also using this technology in several of their plants.
The Dandenong plant produces 42% of the glasswool used in Australia. It provides a total annual income of over $8 million for the 164 full-time and part-time staff employed at the plant.
Fletcher Insulation (Vic) has worked with the local EPA to improve the entire manufacturing process, ensuring the plant remains at the forefront of sustainable manufacturing and cleaner environmental outcomes.
The investment is part of a continuous improvement of the Dandenong plant’s environmental foot print and commercial viability.
Fletcher Insulation is an Australian manufacturer and a fully owned subsidiary of Fletcher Building Limited, one of Australasia’s largest building materials companies.
Fletcher Building Limited also owns the Laminex Group, Stramit and Rocla and employs over 4,500 people in Australia.
Fletcher Insulation Dandenong plant environmental credentials
- The new furnaces allow for greater operation flexibility and unlike the previous furnace which needed to operate continuously, the new furnaces can be switched off when not in use thereby saving energy and additional greenhouse gas emissions
- Predictions in the works approval expect that there will be a 20% reduction of greenhouse gas emissions once process optimisation has been completed
- All glass used in the production of the glasswool insulation is recycled and makes up 70% of material used to manufacture the glasswool insulation. Sources of recycled glass are a mixture of bottle glass, reused plant cullet and laminated window glass which would otherwise go to landfill
- Sand, a renewable resource makes up around 9% with a combination of other materials going into the furnace feed
- The majority of the visible plume is now steam
- Discharged air particles from the furnace will be reduced by more than 50% from previous levels
- Dust and moisture is collected in the new Electric Furnace filters. The dust collected is also reused in the furnace feed
- Except in times of major storms, most of the rainwater entering the site is collected and used in the manufacturing process. This combined with the recycling of process water delivers significant savings in mains water use
- The collection of rain water entering the site also ensures that the release of unused water to the local Eumemmerring Creek is minimised. Any water that is released from the site is visually inspected and tested for pH and conductivity
- The glasswool insulation product manufactured in the plant will itself deliver further reductions in Australia's energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions and offset greenhouse gas emissions produced during the manufacturing process
- Consumers who install Fletcher Insulation’s glasswool insulation will immediately benefit from significant savings in energy costs and greenhouse emissions through the ongoing energy saved during the 70-year average life of the building. This will also reduce pressure on generation infrastructure
- It is estimated that a Victorian house that relies on electricity for its heating and cooling will save around two tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions per annum by including Pink Batts insulation in the walls and ceilings
17-Oct-2007