Excellent Hemp Insulation

2023 Author : Hannah Pearcy | [email protected] . Last modified: 2023-11-26 11:39

The companies Caparol and Naporo of the DAW group convince at Europe's largest environmental and economic award.

The competition entry “facade insulation made of hemp” won second place in the Building and Living category at the GreenTec Awards 2016. On May 29, the winners of all 15 categories were honored at a festive gala in Munich with 1,000 invited guests from politics, business, show and press.

For Naporo Klima Dämmstoff GmbH from Haugsdorf, Austria, which belongs to the DAW Group, the award was another success. "After being nominated for the Austrian State Prize last year, the nomination for the GreenTec Awards is confirmation that we are on the right track with ecological hemp insulation," said DAW Executive Board member Dr. Christoph Hahner. In Germany, the insulation board is sold under the Caparol brand.

Facade insulation made of hemp

Hemp is one of the oldest cultivated plants in humans and also played an important role as a raw material supplier until the beginning of the 20th century. The plant has been experiencing a renaissance for several years and is being rediscovered for more and more areas of application. Due to its exceptional robustness and resilience, the natural raw material fulfills the best requirements for the production of versatile building materials. With a new hemp facade insulation, Caparol, for example, offers an innovative system solution that combines building physics and ecological qualities. Based on the natural material hemp and equipped with modern product properties, it enables intelligent, sustainable facade insulation with an excellent ecological balance that extends from the harvest to the recycling of the raw materials.

Production of the hemp fiber insulation board in the Naporo Klima Dämmstoff GmbH plant in Austria.

First-class ecological balance

Hemp grows very quickly, in sunny weather by up to four meters in 100 days. The plants do not need any fertilizer for this and, because of their pest resistance, make the use of pesticides unnecessary. Up to 97 percent of the hemp plant can be used. Fibers, straw and seeds also provide a valuable raw material for the manufacture of clothing, food and pharmaceuticals. Another ecological plus: as a one-year renewable plant, hemp binds a lot of carbon dioxide in growth. This means that hemp insulation materials have a better ecological balance than many other natural building materials, for example.

The award was accepted in Munich by DAW Executive Board member Dr. Christoph Hahner, Robert Schwemmer (Managing Director Naporo Klima Dämmstoff GmbH), Bettina Klump-Bickert (DAW Sustainability Manager) and Karin Laberenz (DAW Corporate Communications) (right to left)

The GreenTec Awards are among the largest independent environmental and business awards worldwide. Since 2008, they have been awarded annually in various categories to companies, scientific institutions or private projects that set standards in the field of sustainable environmental technologies. The prize aims to bring technology and the environment in harmony and to inspire a broad public for environmental engagement.

Source: DAW