2014 Media Coverage

News & Feature Stories about ACH Foam Technologies & the Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) Industry

United Connects
October 2014

Recent efforts in California, Chicago and New York to ban EPS (expanded polystyrene) products such as packing peanuts and foodservice items are being challenged by environmentalists and industry experts who argue that the bans will do more harm than good.

While EPS foam was once thought to be environmentally unfriendly, a new study “Impact of Plastics Packaging on Life Cycle Energy Consumption & Greenhouse Gas Emissions in the US & Canada Substitution Analysis” proves otherwise. Data from the report, which was compiled by Franklin Associates for the American Chemistry Council (ACC) and the Canadian Plastics Industry Association, shows that replacing plastic packaging with alternative materials would result in 4.5 times more packaging weight based on figures from 2010, as well as an 80 percent increase in energy use and 130 percent more global warming potential. Read More.

Architectural West
September/October 2014

In this decade of emerging technologies that seek to decrease our carbon footprint, structural insulated panels, or SIPs, have come of age. More and more architects and builders are designing with SIPs and are creating beautiful buildings that approach net zero energy use. Students of green design are taking note. Start.Home, built by Stanford students with SIPs, won first place in affordability and third place for market appeal at the U.S. Department of Energy's 2013 Solar Decathlon, held in Orange County, California, last October. ACH Foam Technologies provided the R-Control SIPs for the winning home. Read More.

American City & County
August 2014

When it came time to build flagship fire station #5 in Manhattan, Kan., city officials and contractors opted for more cost-efficinet prefabricated panels from ACH Foam Technologies. According to Mike Gibson of Murray & Sons Construction, unless you know that ACH’s R-Control structural insulated panels (SIPs) were used to build the fire station, you would have no idea by lookingat the finished design that it was constructed with pre-fabricated panels. Read More.

ASHE Scanner
August 2014

ACH Foam Technologies, Denver, has provided EPS geofoam for several construction projects in the Windy City—among them, Millennium Park, Soldier’s Field and most recently—the Gary-Chicago International Airport roadway expansion and the Metra 35th Street train station accessing WhiteSox U.S. Cellular Park.

As part of the airport’s roadway expansion, a two-span steel bridge had to be built over the EJ & E railroad tracks that bisected Airport Road near Chicago Avenue. This was project number six of 18 work segments that comprise the Gary-Chicago International airport expansion—scheduled for completion mid-September of 2014. Read More.

Municipal Sewer & Water
July 2014

Geofoam can be effective in mitigating the effects of shifting, settling, and seismic activity on infrastructure to improved pipeline performance during large ground deformation. There are two main advantages that geofoam has over traditional earth cover materials. First is geofoam’s low mass density, which reduces the vertical and horizontal stresses on buried utilities and compressive soils. This reduction in loading and deformation will likely improve the performance of a pipeline during and after a major seismic event along the fault area. Read More.

Concrete Homes
May 2014

EPS board insulation products manufactured by ACH Foam Technologies, are now listed in the Division 7 section of Masterspec to help specifiers select the best insulation for each project.

Most notably, all of ACH Foam Technologies' insulation products are listed as the basis-of-design in Division 7 under specific Foam-Plastic Board Insulation categories. Read More.

Pharmaceutical & Medical Packaging News
April 2014

A report on expanded polystyrene recycling shows an increase in overall recycling, but notes differences when comparing the amounts of post-consumer and post-industrial pounds recycled. According to a press release by ACH Foam Technologies, the EPS Industry Alliance's 2012 bi-annual recycling report shows a modest decrease in the number of post-consumer pounds recycled and a substantial increase in the number of post-industrial pounds recycled based on data received from fifty-one EPS manufacturers and independent recyclers in the United States. The EPS-IA reports that post-industrial and post-consumer EPS recycling increased from 71.3 million to 93.7 million pounds. Read More.

Plastics Recycling Update
February 2014

Considered elusive just five years ago, the recycling of foodservice items and packaging made from expanded polystyrene has recently taken some large steps forward. Walmart and Best Buy, for instance, have initiated EPS foam packaging recycling programs, and fast-food restaurant chain Chick-Fil-A is beginning to recycle its EPS cups. The shift in mind-set relative to EPS recycling didn't just happen. Dart Container Corp., EPS-IA and the American Chemistry Council all worked diligently to explain to communities, governments, and businesses that EPS can be recycled. Read More.

School Construction News
January/February 2014

A multimillion-dollar Center for Student Life now serves as the focal point for students at Augustana College in Rock Island since it debuted in time for the fall 2013 term. The new student center is perfectly situated in the center of the campus; however, the location also presented serious construction challenges because of its location on a hillside. "The use of geofoam allowed the design team to implement the college's vision without compromising the program, function or anesthetics. Without geofoam, a major redesign might have been necessary," said John Whitlock of BLDD Architects. Read More.

CE News
January 2014

ACH Foam Technologies provided EPS geofoam for several construction projects in Chicago including Millenium Park, Soldier Field, and most recently, the Gary-Chicago International Airport roadway expansion. The bridge was built over two existing rails as well as two future rails. There was a potential problem with the quality of soil where the bridge was located. Analysis found that geofoam was the preferred alternative material. Read More.