MECHANICAL INSULATION CASE STUDY—TIMELY OPPORTUNITY FOR RETROFITS AND NEW CONSTRUCTION

INTRODUCTION

“You won't find any issues in our newly constructed and retrofitted buildings,” was the response that Lyndon Johnson, representative of the BC Insulators, got from the campus facility manager when explaining the poor state of practice of mechanical insulation, “let me show you one of our showcase buildings.” The building in question had just undergone $80 million in upgrades and was designed to achieve LEED ^® Silver equivalent rating. The upgrades included a high-performance climate control system that allows for precise control of temperature and humidity in different rooms. “We toured the building and found many problems with the mechanical insulation,” explained Mr. Johnson afterwards, “including substandard finish, adhesive tape lifting, and most disturbing, 20 feet of missing insulation on each floor of the building along the dividing line of the two phases of the project. One or both sets of contractors that worked on the job had completely left off the insulation. The saddest part is, this didn't surprise me given what we know about the state of the industry today.”