Greening the Pink Panther: Owens Corning's New EcoTouch Fiberglas

Owens Corning's new EcoTouch Fiberglas insulation is made with a non-formaldehyde, plant-based binder. Photo: Owens Corning. Click on image to enlarge.

Owens Corning, whose pink fiberglass insulation has been around for more than 70 years, whose shade of pink is trademarked, and whose Pink Panther has become almost synonymous with insulation, has begun a top-to-bottom transformation of its fiberglass insulation. Beginning next month, EcoTouch™ Fiberglas™ insulation with PureFiber™ Technology will begin replacing the company's traditional fiberglass insulation, which is produced with phenol formaldehyde binder.

While Owens Corning would not divulge the exact make-up of the PureFiber binder, it is described as formaldehyde-free and "made from widely available plant materials." Owens Corning joins two other fiberglass insulation manufacturers that offer non-formaldehyde plant-based binders: Knauf, which introduced its EcoBatt made with Ecose Technology in late 2008, and CertainTeed, which introduced its "Sustainable Insulation" in mid-2010. None of these manufacturers have made public exactly what their binders are, though all claim that the binder is plant-based.