Materials
Safety
ISOVER is a great fit for cruise ships
Insulation solutions in the marine industry is no small matter. For example, when a cruise ship is insulated, this can require up to 500,000 square metres of insulation, says Key Account Manager Herkko Miettinen from Saint-Gobain.
Since energy consumption related to HVAC (Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning) systems constitutes a large part of the total fuel consumption of a ship (up to 35% for cruise ships), installing high thermal insulation in the decks, bulkheads and ducts has a significant impact on operating costs. The big industry players know this full well:
“Our ISOVER solutions are supplied to the major shipyards across the world, ranging from Meyer Turku to other key European shipyards,” Miettinen says, adding that such recent releases as Viking Grace and Megastar rely heavily on ISOVER when it comes to insulation.
Fire Safety First!
As the world’s leading insulation company, ISOVER has drawn attention to the importance of effective and sustainable insulation in Marine & Offshore. Here, effective insulation is not only needed to save energy, but also to provide fire safety, acoustical and thermal comfort.
“Fire safety upon the seas is always the starting point and the most important thing,” Miettinen points out.
ISOVER’s biggest hit product at the shipyards lately has been ULTIMATE mineral wool that is produced through a unique and patented fiberizing process.
“ULTIMATE is a high-performance mineral wool with excellent fire protection properties and a drastically reduced weight – up to 50% lighter – when compared to traditional stonewool solutions,” explains Miettinen.
“When you utilize hundreds of thousands of square metres of insulation, it really makes a difference if you use a light product or not. With a lighter vessel, you can reduce fuel consumption significantly – thus bringing down the ship’s carbon footprint,” he says.
Eye on Carbon
Carbon is reduced also during the logistics phase – as trucks make their deliveries at the yards, ULTIMATE makes for a lighter load. Also, one truck can deliver 50-75% more of ULTIMATE than traditional stonewool.
“Lightness of the product is also for the benefit of the shipyard installing teams: ULTIMATE is a joy to work with, allowing faster installation pace.”
In addition, ULTIMATE products have excellent sound absorption properties.
“With ULTIMATE, there is no need anymore for high density products to achieve high performance in sound reduction,” says Miettinen.
More information:
www.isover-tekniset-eristeet.fi
www.weber-marine.com
by: Sami J. Anteroinen
photos: Saint-Gobain Finland Oy
