Recticel supports the growth of polyurethane insulators in Bourges
Batirama.com 06/29/20210
The manufacturer of polyurethane panels automates the production line of its Berrichon site and strengthens its workforce to support the progression of its sales of insulation.
Legend: sheltering the French head office of Recticel and the factory of insulating panels, the Bourges (Cher) site, inaugurated in early 2013, extends over 33,000 m2.
Insulating for the tertiary, residential, agricultural building, or intended for industry (integrated into prefabricated walls or as packaging elements): the panels all leave the Bourges production chain, which uses 500,000 m3 of polyurethane per year.
Recticel defines and optimizes its formulations, to control the foam produced: the regularity of air inclusions and performance stability (thermal conductivity, mechanical resistance, dimensions) are essential elements for producing quality panels.
Poured between 2 facing sheets (multilayer complexes developed with Recticel partners), liquid raw materials (isocyanate and polyol) are expanded from their mixture, multiplying the initial volume by 40.
A very large number of parameters are to be adjusted at the machines to obtain a perfectly homogeneous foam and a stable quality panel.But the "secret boot" lies especially in the additives, which give properties specific to each foam according to the use for which it is intended.
At the exit of this 100 -ton mold (set according to 150 parameters), the strip will be cut into 6 m panels.
Put at rest 1 to 2 hours in cooling turn, the mother panels are again cut and machined.
A dynamic team
The site employs 60 people.De Bourges are managed orders, customer service and organization of deliveries.
On the production side, a dozen operators work on this automated line, only to control and adjust the different machines in action."We have led and continue a lot of work on safety, quality and performance," says Cédric Bara, the director of the two French factories, who proudly shows the dynamic display screen that has been consulted by everyone for a year.
“Thanks to the business intelligence software set up, the computer system displays the information of each machine.The whole team can participate in the analysis and development of action plans to improve performance;which had a real effect ”.
Production teams are continuing their skills, while recruitment is undergoing its course.The strengthening of digitalization and proximity to the customer remain major development axes to which Estelle Moraud, the new commercial director of Recticel France and Southern Europe is tackling.
Estelle Moraud, Commercial Director France Arrival at Recticel in April, and Cédric Bara, director and craftsman at the birth of the Bourges factory.
Recticel, a story of polyurethane
Leader manufacturer of polyurethane foam, the Belgian group produces 94 % of its sales in Europe, in insulation (30 % of CA), bedding (29 % of turnover), and technical mosses for the automobile, aviation, furnishings and a thousand everyday objects (39 % of CA).In 2020, its turnover reached 828.8 million euros and it employs 4,220 employees in 20 countries.
The path has been traveled from the cannon powder company created in 1778, in Belgium, then the first polyurethane foams synthesized in 1952. "Discreetly present" in France for forty years, the group created Recticel Insulation France in 2012And opens its first French factory, in Bourges.
Another will follow at the end of 2016, in Saint-Barthélémy-d'Anjou (Maine-et-Loire), which manufactures acoustic insulation panels by recycling 50,000 mattresses annually (its Silent Wall panel meets a great success, especially in France andin Spain).
Aspirated, sawing dust is collected and compacts, which are recycled in Germany in the manufacture of water -repellent floors.
The spirit of innovation
The coming years announce great growth prospects for the French subsidiary of Recticel, whose insulation solutions, indoors and outdoors, apply to walls, floors, facades, inclined and dishes.The demand in rigid panels increases significantly;In particular to isolate and serve as a waterproofing support on the roofs of buildings with steel tank structure.
The efforts accentuated in the insulation of buildings (RE 2020 and upcoming regulations for the existing building) should push the advantage of the product because despite its petrochemical origin, its environmental assessment presents assets, linked in particular to very good thermal conductivities obtained andto an inferior process.
Pour accompagner cette évolution du marché français*, Recticel bénéficie de l’important service de R&D du groupe en Belgique. Exemple récent de cette capacité d’innovation, Eurotoit Montagne, lancé en 2020,a été récompensé aux Trophées Négoce 2021 et se développe bien dans l’arc alpin.
Intended for the sarking installation on the steep roofs of altitude buildings, this effective rigid panel (λ of 0.022 W/MK) and small format (60 x 120 cm) is easy to transport and handle.It is fitted in all directions, thanks to the 4-sided groove, and its anti-glisse and anti-reflective coating provides appreciable installation on the roofs with a strong slope.
*Polyurethane, in the form of projected panels or flakes, represents 12 % of the French insulation market in 2020 (250 million m²), against 4 % in 2012 (SNPU source).
Source: Batirama.com/ Emmanuelle Jeanson
