Thermal and acoustic insulation protects workers, contractors and business owners, often operating in extreme and highly technical environments. Encon Technical Solutions offers a wide range of high-performance technical insulation materials from market-leading brands to support customers in meeting their complex project requirements.
After 38 years in the industry, very few people know this better than Bob Cordall, our Sales Director for Heavy Industrial and MOD, who discusses his vast experience, manufacturer collaboration and innovations in the industry…
Bob comments: “During my long career, I have worked closely with stakeholders in the industrial, power generation, petrochemical, offshore and defence sectors. I have become very familiar with the challenges faced by our customers, as well as gaining a strong understanding of the technical side of the role.
“My experience cannot easily be learned in a classroom, but I apply it daily to help customers overcome their issues. I certainly don’t know everything, but my years in the industry mean I always know who to ask to tackle a customer’s problem!
“As a business we have built trusting relationships with market-leading manufacturers including ROCKWOOL, FOAMGLAS, Armacell and Paroc, and we engage with our partners from an early stage on projects so we can supply the solutions our customers need.
Over the years we have supported our customers on a myriad of fascinating projects across different sectors, including supplying KAEFER UK & Ireland at Sellafield nuclear power plant, leveraging our experience in the nuclear industry, for which we have achieved ISO 19443 accreditation.”
Encon Technical Solutions offers a growing range of technical insulation solutions for the extensive range of projects and application scenarios our customers work in. With years of combined experience in distribution and dealing with customers and manufacturers in the technical insulation sector, our in-branch Technical Solutions specialists are trained to help customers navigate their varied and complex project requirements.
Industrial projects can encompass anything from pipes, boiler walls, ducts, vessels, fire compartmentation systems and more, each of which require different solutions to meet the requirements and regulations of the specific scenario. Materials must possess the required CE (European Conformity) or UKCA (UK Conformity Assessed) approvals, while properties including thermal insulation, weather resistance and acoustic insulation must be considered.
Bob explains: “The environments we work in can vary greatly, with many complex factors needing consideration. Operating temperatures tend to dictate specifications in plants and refineries, while properties such as the mass and volume of insulation are vital in applications in the marine industry where space is limited and where speed and fuel efficiency are factors.
“The industry is always evolving, devising new solutions for existing challenges as well as engineering materials in emerging industries, so there is always something new to learn. Weather resistance is an important consideration with so many plants operating by the sea or offshore, risking corrosion under insulation (CUI) due to exposure to moisture and salt. Traditionally, metallic insulation would be considered in these areas, but aerogel technologies such as Armacell’s ArmaGel range have been developed to protect against CUI, allowing more layers of insulation in smaller spaces.
“Emerging industries pose less traditional challenges for our sector. Temperatures in hydrocarbon fires can reach 800°C in just seven minutes, requiring specialist solutions, while cryogenic projects can be as low as -180°C so effective insulation is vital to maintain safety and energy efficiency. Closed-cell insulation such as Foamglas is necessary in cold environments as any moisture particles reaching the pipe will otherwise freeze, potentially compromising performance.
“With such a variety of projects and solutions to work with, there is never a dull day in Technical Insulation!”
You can find out more about our Technical Solutions specialism on our website, where you can also download our Encon Technical Solutions Price Guide. To find out how we can support your heavy industrial projects fill out our Project Support form and a member of the team will get back to you.
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