Atermit

All of the materials we use in our products are 100% reusable and recyclable. Making sustainable developments for the protection of natural resources is one of our company’s main priorities.
Atermit emphasizes the importance of protecting the individual and the environment at every step, from the development of a new product to the design of a new application.

Atermit Fiber Cement and Environment

Atermit, which has become the symbol of quality production in Turkey since 1956, produces with an understanding that respects the environment and natural structure as a result of its corporate culture. A First in Turkey! Atermit, which started to produce asbestos-free corrugated sheets by breaking new ground in Turkey, continues to be the pioneer of innovations in the sector. Organic and inorganic fibers and various cement chemicals are used as raw materials in the new product, which is an improved version of fiber cement boards produced under the brand Atermit since 1956. Atermit has become one of the few companies in the world that produces asbestos-free corrugated sheets without “know-how” thanks to the success of its R&D engineers and its long years of experience as a company.

Atermit Fiber Cement Corrugated Sheet Raw Materials:
-Cement
-Inorganic fibers used in textiles
-Cellulose fibers
-Cement chemicals
-Water

SRI (Sunlight Reflection Index)
Atermit is the first roofing material manufacturer to measure the SRI values required for LEED certification for its three main roofing products. The SRI (Solar Reflectance Index) value defines the amount of solar heat reflectivity of a coating material. For example, on a sunny day, the temperature of a black painted roof increases by 50 oC, while the white part of the same roof increases by 8 oC because the white color reflects the sun’s rays more. The SRI value can be used to define the reflectance difference of these two colors.
Solar rays coming to the building surface are reflected, transmitted or absorbed by the building material. This fundamental effect of the sun should guide the material selection and structural element design. Factors such as the thickness, density, heat transmission coefficient, specific heat, light absorption and reflection coefficient of the surface, flatness or roughness of the surface, and filler structure of the building materials used in the design of the building envelope should be considered.

Systems are being developed around the world to minimize the environmental impact of products and processes. Companies that attach importance to this issue during building design certify their buildings and document their work on this subject. These certifications also allow for a benchmarking as they rate the environmental impact of the product and production processes. These types of certification systems for the construction industry have been developed to identify the environmental impact of a construction and to promote environmental friendliness as well as energy efficiency. Two of the most common of these certificates in our country are the US-based USGBC (United States Green Building Council, USA Green Building Board) certificate LEED and the UK-based BRE (Building Research Establishment, Building Research Institution) certificate BREEAM.

LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification is a green building certification system based on points awarded for each element of the building, including materials. The SRI values of Atermit products will help the design made within the LEED system to gain points. The following table shows the SRI values of the 3 main Atermit products. For details about the products, you can refer to the Roof and Facade Coating Products page.

Solar rays coming to the building surface are reflected, transmitted or absorbed by the building material. This fundamental effect of the sun should guide the material selection and structural element design. Factors such as the thickness, density, heat transmission coefficient, specific heat, light absorption and reflection coefficient of the surface, flatness or roughness of the surface, and filler structure of the building materials used in the design of the building envelope should be considered.

Aterpor EPS and Environment

EPS Production
EPS (Expanded Polystyrene, Expanded Polystyrene) is obtained as a result of polymerization of styrene monomer. The blowing agent in the EPS raw material is expanded in a mold with steam and the mold is provided to take its shape. This blowing agent (pentane) has no adverse effects on the ozone layer. Pentane gas completes its decomposition in the atmosphere in eight days.

Properties of EPS
EPS is non-toxic; It does not react chemically under normal atmospheric conditions. It does not contain Chlorofluorocarbon (CFC), Hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) and formaldehyde. Its use is environmentally friendly according to the Kyoto and Montreal protocols.
EPS is not a food source for bacteria and fungi. 98-99% of the product produced consists of air and 1-2% of solid matter. In EPS production, less energy and therefore less natural resources are consumed compared to similar products. Heat consumption in buildings insulated with EPS decreases by up to 50%. For more information on this subject, you can refer to our Thermal Insulation page.

Since EPS does not contain harmful substances, it can be used in packaging for food, beehives and containers in which small creatures are grown. It can be mixed with the soil to loosen the plant soil; It does not harm microorganisms. EPS has less than 0.1% weight in the garbage and waste produced by an average city. EPS pieces in garbage buried in city dumps provide ventilation of buried garbage and faster decomposition of organic materials.

A Sustainable World and Thermal Insulation
Thermal insulation is mostly known and studied in our country with its economic dimension. Therefore, when taking the thermal insulation decision, the return period of the investment and the profit left after the return are at the forefront. Although its economic dimension is the driving force behind thermal insulation, it is not the only contribution to our society and our world. In simple terms, we can divide the contributions of thermal insulation into two as energy saving and comfortable living. We can divide these two items into items within themselves. The reasons why thermal insulation is indispensable for a sustainable future are explained below:

Energy Saving
-Contributing to the environment by reducing CO2 emissions and preventing global climate change
-Contributing to the environment by reducing the effective use of natural resources -Contribution to the Family/Business Budget
-Contribution to the Country Budget
-Comfortable life
-Constant heat throughout the day
-Constant heat during seasonal changes
-Equal heat in every part of the building.

In order to prevent global climate change, which poses a great threat to the future of our world, we need to reduce CO2 emissions. According to the research conducted by Vattenfall, one of the world’s energy giants, together with McKinsey, 27 methods of reducing CO2 emissions and the CO2 emissions that these methods will reduce annually have been determined. Among these methods, thermal insulation is one of the most prominent among these 27 methods, with a reduction of 1.7 Billion Tons of CO2 emissions per year.

We can examine the annual cost of 27 methods of reducing CO2 emissions from the table below. Those marked in yellow are negative cost methods, those marked in green are costly but feasible investments that cost up to €40 per tonne, and those marked in blue are investments that cost more than €60 per tonne, that is, unfeasible. The most profitable one among these investments is “better thermal insulation”, which leaves a gain of 150 € per ton. In other words, while thermal insulation is an inevitable measure to be taken against climate change, it is also the method that contributes the most to the world economy with its negative cost.

A second contribution of Thermal Insulation to our nature is the efficient use of our limited natural resources. Energy efficiency should be ensured by thermal insulation or by strengthening the insulation of existing insulated buildings. Annual energy consumption in the world is approximately 12.5 billion TEP (Tonnes of Oil Equivalent). Approximately 3.5 billion TEP of this consumption is consumed for heating and cooling purposes in buildings. Considering that 90-95% heat savings will be achieved with excellent thermal insulation, we have the potential to save 3 billion TEP per year and protect our natural resources. For a sustainable future, a sustainable climate and a sustainable world, our buildings should be made energy efficient. As Turkey, our contribution to our world in this regard should be in two ways. On the one hand, public awareness should be raised about the contribution of thermal insulation to the environment, and environmentally sensitive institutions should be mobilized. On the other hand, non-insulated buildings should be made insulated, and the thickness of thermal insulation should be increased to 8-10 cm in the first place and then to 25-30 cm. Although the contribution of thermal insulation to our world is so important, it is not known enough by the public. Awareness campaigns should be provided on this issue and public awareness should be raised. This is not well known to the public.

Kaynaklar:
Vattenfall’s Climate Map 2030 (ingilizce)
Enkvist, Per-Anders; Naucler, Tomas; Rosander,Jerker. A Cost Curve For Greenhouse Gas Reduction. The McKinsey Quarterly 2007 Number 1. (ingilizce)

EPS Recycling
EPS can be recycled at many stages of its life. During production, all wastes are broken down and mixed back into the product in a way that does not impair the quality of the final product. The performance of EPS is at least as long as the economic life of the building.
If the building is destroyed for any reason, the used EPS can be collected and reused as it does not deteriorate and does not decrease in quality. Therefore, EPS from construction, which is among the wastes, is in trace amounts. If we add the EPS from the packaging in the waste to this amount, EPS occupies 0.1% of the total domestic solid waste. Even if it is a last resort to dispose of EPS, EPS does not deteriorate in the garbage, does not create greenhouse gases, does not pollute the air, water or ecosystem.

Environmental Note of EPS
BRE (Building Research Establishment ) is the UK’s foremost authority on sustainable construction. The BRE Green Guide report has become the most important resource used to categorize products used in construction according to environmental standards. This report categorizes products according to their types and places of use (in the EPS insulation section) and notes according to 13 criteria.
These criteria have been chosen among the most important criteria in a field from the effects of climate change to the decrease of ozone in the stratosphere, from environmental-toxicity to the decrease of fossil fuels. The latest Green Guide awarded EPS once again with A+ in total.

EPS received an A grade on most of the critical environmental performance matrix, with the exception of an average grade of A+. Some of those:

Source: www.eps.co.uk/sustainability/sustainability.html

Environmental Impact of EPS
Environmental Product Declaration studies for EPS products produced by Atermit were commissioned by EUMEPS in 2023 . In the study below, the values of 21 EPS product manufacturers from various European countries, including Atermit representing Turkey, were used. You can find the MCD reports of white and gray products in different densities below;

Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) for EPS insulation – White, density 15 kgm
Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) for EPS insulation – Grey, density 15 kgm

Documents Related to the Subject “ Sustainable Construction with EPS Insulation Materials ” brochure prepared by EUMEPS , of which we are a member (English ) ” Reducing Climate Change with EPS Insulation ” brochure prepared by EUMEPS , of which we are a member
Buildings with EPS for a Better Environment ” brochure (in English)

EPP and the Environment

EPP (Expandade Polypropylene, Expanded Polypropylene) products are shaped by inflating with steam in the mold.
No blowing agents are used in the production of EPP. EPP is also widely used as food packaging since it does not contain any harmful substances like EPS. Thanks to its heat resistance, unlike EPS, it can be sterilized and allows multiple uses. EPP is a 100% recyclable material.

You can find the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) report for Arpro, the product we use, of our EPP supplier JSP, below. As can be seen on the first page of the report, if a vehicle’s seat is turned to the EPP system, a 12:1 CO2 reduction benefit is provided. The environmental impact of the production of EPP used in a seat is equivalent to 21.9 kg of CO2(e). Assuming that the vehicle has a lifetime of 100,000 km, the fuel savings due to the lightness to be achieved is 264.0 kg CO2(e). As a result, a reduction of 2.65 g of CO2(e) per kilometer can be seen as a result of my seat being converted to EPP. You can read the details in the attached report.

Energy-saving

Özgür Atermit Industry and Trade Inc. and Atermit Industry and Trade Inc., we are trying to use energy resources more efficiently in order to reduce our dependence on foreign energy. First of all, we have applications in various fields in order to use our existing resources in the most efficient way.

1. Our steam boilers have switched from using fuel-oil to using natural gas.
2. Economizer and turbulator systems have been used.
3. In the compressors, the inverter (speed control) is used to save electrical energy.
4. Our machines in production work with automation system.
5. In our facilities, our machine parks are constantly renewed and we work with more efficient machines that use less energy.
6. Rainwater can be collected in cisterns and reused.
7. Our employees are encouraged to think about energy saving issues and their ideas are also evaluated within our organization.

Passive House

Up to 90% Energy Saving with Atermit Products:
With a standard thermal insulation, approximately 50% energy savings are achieved in buildings. However, contrary to popular belief, it is possible to increase energy savings up to 90% by making better thermal insulation. Passive Houses are buildings with an annual heating and cooling energy requirement of 15 kWh per square meter, that is, approximately 4 TL. If we consider a house of 150 square meters, we can think that a total of only 600 TL, that is, an average of 50 TL per month, will be spent on heating and cooling throughout the year.

Energy Efficiency and 4 Benefits:
1)  Energy efficiency with thermal insulation is the most important saving item that will contribute to the family budget in today’s world where energy prices are increasing.
2) It contributes positively to the foreign trade balance in our country, which is dependent on foreign energy in terms of energy.
3)  It ensures the protection of our world’s natural resources, that is, the resources we inherit from our world are not spent less.
4)  By reducing energy consumption, it ensures that environmental pollution does not occur, while it also contributes to global warming by reducing carbon dioxide emissions.

Thermal Insulation and Health
The benefits of thermal insulation are not limited to energy efficiency. Thermal Insulation also provides a healthy and comfortable life by minimizing the temperature changes caused by morning and evening temperatures inside the building. The house never gets too hot and never gets too cold. The temperature in front of glass and walls is prevented from being different from other parts of the house.
It allows us to obtain the heat we always want in different seasons by saving.

How is it done?
The first Passive House was built in Germany in 1990, and then it started to become widespread in other European countries and the USA over time. While a building can be designed as a passive house when it is first built, it is often possible to reach the required values with the insulation made later. 5 conditions are required to create a Passive House.

1) Perfect Thermal Insulation,
2)  Qualified Glasses,
3)  Heat Recovery Ventilation,
4)  Prevention of Thermal Bridges,
5)  Air Tightness.

Although it varies according to different climatic conditions, thermal insulation thicknesses should be increased to 30-40cm instead of 10-12cm on roofs, and 15-20cm instead of 5cm on walls.
When the insulation thickness is tripled, the cost of insulation doubles approximately.
While the payback period is 2-3 years in the usual insulation thicknesses in our country, although it increases to 3-4 years in passive houses, the savings after the investment is received is much higher in the long run.

Aterpor and Silver Aterpor
For quality thermal insulation, Atermit’s classic white EPS Aterpor can be used, as well as products such as Silver Aterpor, which provides more thermal insulation at the same thickness, in order not to lose ground as the insulation gets thicker.
Silver Aterpor is a carbon reinforced EPS thermal insulation board developed by Ineos Nova.

Documents Related to the Subject
EUMEPS “Buildings Using Low and Zero Energy with EPS Insulation Materials ” brochure of EUMEPS (in English)