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Textile insulation. This is the name of the new technology that the Lunger-based company HP Gasser intends to use to renovate many sports and industrial halls over the next few years. It is the result of a project with the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts.
Published by Luzerner Zeitung: www.luzernerzeitung.ch/ld.1134436
Zéline Odermatt
There are thousands of sports and industrial halls in Switzerland. Many of them are old, poorly insulated and should therefore be renovated, writes the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSLU) in a statement. To simplify this process, the university, in collaboration with the Lungerer company HP Gasser AG, has developed a technology “that could revolutionize the renovation process” – a so-called textile-based dusk.
“The collaboration with HSLU has been going on for years,” explains project manager Simon Halter of HP Gasser AG. He is responsible for the practical handling and the cooperation with the HSLU students at the site in Lungern. The prototypes were manufactured there. “We have the necessary expertise for planning, processing, execution and assembly. That’s why everything came together at our site.”
The goal is to make it easier to upgrade a hall in need of renovation. As the university writes, these are thousands of halls that no longer meet today’s energy requirements and for which renovation is being sought as part of the federal government’s Energy Strategy 2050. “If you calculate with ten percent that can be equipped with the textile insulation and are allowed to do so due to static requirements, there are enough halls left,” Halter says. In addition, there are 2000 old commercial halls that could be converted into office or exhibition buildings with the textile insulation.
Thermal insulation consists of waste materials
But what is this process all about? The revolutionary thing about textile insulation is the unusual combination of materials, says the HSLU. Simon Halter explains that the process can be used as a “cushion” variant or a “canopy” variant, depending on the type of building. In the latter, the fabric is applied only on the inside and the insulation works by means of panels.
With the “cushion” two fabrics are stretched and at the end the insulation is blown in. “The use of fiberglass fabric also ensures fire protection.” The blown-in thermal insulation between the fabrics is made of waste materials. Depending on the variant, the granules are rock wool, cellulose from waste paper or rock wool insulation boards. Halter: “Thus, the method also makes ecological sense.”
Another plus point, he says, is saving time and therefore money. The renovation work will only take a few weeks instead of months, as was previously the case. “The textile insulation is individually planned and pre-produced at our factory, so we can refurbish the hall within a short time. The customer’s biggest need will be that we won’t stop operations in the hall,” Halter says.
The project manager of HP Gasser AG does not see a completely new creation in this process, but it is possible to achieve clear advantages in terms of construction. “Because the textile insulation remains visible inside a hall, we can also score points visually.” That’s because the fiberglass fabric can be printed with color gradients and patterns.
Company hopes to receive orders for the winter
The HSLU project is now complete, with textile insulation available in fall 2019. “Various inquiries have already been received about this process. We already have a concrete inquiry for a hall, although we only wanted to get started with this work towards fall and winter,” says Simon Halter. For the company from Obwalden, the usually quieter period in the cold months was also one of the reasons why it took part in the project. Halter is confident: “We’ll see what else is in store for us.”
