US Building Products Corporation GO Lab, Inc. moves a wood fiber insulation board plant from Berga, Germany to its production site in Madison, Maine. Once the equipment is operational in 2022, GO Lab will become the first company to produce wood fiber insulation in North America, a German manufacturer of machinery and plants. Dieffenbacher said in a statement.

Dieffenbacher initially sold the relocated plant to Homatherm, later renamed Homanit Building Materials GmbH & Co. KG, in 2009. Experts from Dieffenbacher inspected the plant on behalf of GO Lab at the end of 2018 and recommended the ‘purchase. After GO Lab agreed to buy the plant in April 2019, Dieffenbacher helped the company finance the move and the planning for its relocation. Dieffenbacher will also modernize the plant and install new equipment, including a gluing system and a dryer.

“Packaged in over 80 regular and oversized shipping containers, our factory arrived in Maine at the end of February,” said Dr. Joshua Henry, who founded GO Lab with Matthew O’Malia in 2017. “This is all about a nationally and internationally renowned event — The first manufacturing line for wood fiber insulation in North America. The industry is looking at this with the hope that it will be a model for the future, ”added Henry.

“Our Madison plant will have three production lines. The Dieffenbacher line is the largest and most complex, starting with the refining of the wood chips and continuing through the production and packaging of the final product, ”said Henry. “We received excellent support from Dieffenbacher throughout the process – starting with decommissioning the facility in Germany, purchasing, financing and shipping the equipment, and planning the engineering. required for the line. rebirth in the United States If you are new to the market and planning a major projectlike that, you need good tech support. Dieffenbacher helped us really understand the equipment we were going to buy and the processes to restart it. “

“The idea of ​​starting the production of wood fiber insulation in North America developed over time, ”explained O’Malia. “As an architect, I heard builders complain about itchy particles of mineral wool and fiberglass and poor air quality. Recovery of non-recyclable foam scraps huge space in dumpsters and plastic dust from cutting board the insulation covered the floor and the installers’ clothing during application. In addition, I started to think about the reasons why we used insulation products. heavily derived from petroleum to reduce the amount of fossil fuel required to operate buildings. The reduced energy consumption is canceled by these traditional insulators and their high carbon footprint. ”

Photo: GO Lab founding partners, Dr Joshua Henry (left) and Matthew O’Malia (right) / Fred Field, Mainebiz

“We found that wood fiber insulation would solve all of these problems, but as it is such a light product, high transportation costs import it from Europe at an unreasonable cost, ”said Henry. “On the other hand, we thought that the wood fiber insulation made in America, with a raw material and energy costs – would allow us to enter the market at a similar price to other insulation options. We will be able to offer a topHigh-performance, durable and complete insulation product with a negative carbon footprint priced for general public adoption. “

“We started looking for the right production equipment and found it in Germany. Dieffenbacher technology is exactly what we needed, and the support we got from Dieffenbacher will help us turn our idea into reality very soon, ”concluded O’Malia.