Fireproofing - Green Products

Monokote® Fireproofing
Fireproofing Products to Support Sustainable Design Practices

Environmental Quality

An increasingly important factor in selecting construction materials is understanding the product's lasting impact on the environment. Today's movement toward "Green", or sustainable design practices, suggests that architects consider not only the obvious qualities of the materials, but also the long-term impact on the environment over the building's life-cycle.

Grace Construction Products has made a commitment to manufacturing fireproofing products that utilize recycled materials wherever possible.

Committed to Using Recycled Materials

• On an annual basis, Monokote® MK-6 and Retro-Guard product lines use approximately 23 million pounds of recycled materials!
  
  
• Grace Construction Products manufactures Monokote® MK-6® and Retro-Guard® Replacement Fireproofing using recycled post-industrial expanded polystyrene.
  
  
• Utilizing post-industrial polystyrene, instead of virgin expanded polystyrene, avoids the production of pentane emissions - a known contributor to low level smog formation.
  
  
• Our use of post-consumer paper saves the equivalent harvesting of more than 120,000 trees per year. By utilizing this reusable material, we spare the production of over 600,000 lbs. of air pollutants, 250,000 lbs. of water pollutants, 1,500,000 lbs. of solid waste and 200 billion BTU's of energy that would be used to manufacture the equivalent amount of virgin paper. *

  * Based on statistics provided by the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries, Inc.
  

Proven Raw Materials

• Monokote®'s main ingredient is gypsum -- one of the most widely used, and safest of all construction materials and commonly used in wallboard and plaster. Gypsum provides Monokote® MK-6 and Retro-Guard® with strength, durability and thermal resistance.
  
  
• Shredded expanded polystyrene is added to provide volume and improved the speed and efficiency of product installation.
  
  
• Monokote® also utilizes a common cellulose, recycled newsprint, which enhances the application of our fireproofing.
  
  
• Monokote® MK-6 and Retro-Guard contains no asbestos or mineral fibers.

Environmentally Responsible Manufacturing Practices

• The entire Monokote® manufacturing process is HCFC, HFC and CFC free.
  
  
• The Monokote® production line is totally self-contained which virtually eliminates the generation of scrap product.
  
  
• No water is consumed in our manufacturing process and little energy is required.
  
  
• We purchase raw materials in bulk re-usable containers which saves over 100,000 paper bags per year.
  
  
• Our products are packaged in bags printed with water-based inks which minimizes the off-gassing of VOC's, an issue long associated with solvent based inks.
  
  
• Each manufacturing facility has a wooden pallet exchange program that facilitates the re-use of wooden pallets from contractors and suppliers.

Monokote® Fireproofing Stays in Place!

One of Monokote®'s best benefits is its reliable bond strength. This is an important consideration because it stays in place, not just during application, but over the total life cycle of the building including construction, renovation and demolition!

Sustainable Design Becomes Standard Practice

Today's trend becomes tomorrow's standard practice. In city after city, architects incorporate sustainable building practices into their designs and we can now see real-world examples of "Green" architectural design. Both building owners and future tenants recognize the value of environmentally responsible design that improves worker productivity, safety, and maintainability.

If you are interested in avoiding expensive disposal charges by becoming part of our recycling program, please contact me at debra.a.fearn-wright@grace.com or 905-686-5349. We have a recycling facility in Ajax, Ontario, Canada and Irondale, Alabama, U.S.A.

Click here to view a profile of a sustainable design project

News Article

Monokote Recycling Program