Choose Country Share Search About Us Our Commitments Our Solutions Our Projects More OUR HISTORY Kingspan History Founded in 1965 and headquartered in Ireland, Kingspan Group has a long and diverse history which is deeply rooted in the communities in which our plants such as Sherburn and Holywell are developed. Starting as a small engineering and contracting business, owner Eugene Murtagh began manufacturing agricultural trailers from behind his family's bar, Murtagh's in Kingscourt Co. Cavan. History Highlights 1965 Kingspan starts as a small engineering and contracting business. Eugene Murtagh begins manufacturing agricultural trailers behind his family business, Murtagh's pub in Kingscourt, Ireland. In the following years Kingscourt Construction Group was formed 1973 Further expansion sees the importation of cold roll and pre-engineering building components, and the first company Sec-Form, today known as Kingspan Panels, is incorporated to carry on this business 1975 Now operating from the current head office premises in Kingscourt, Kingspan diversifies into the construction of industrial silos, and large transportable waste disposal containers, and machinery installation 1976 Sec-form begins to manufacture Multibeam Purlins under licence. Kingscourt Construction acquires the assets of a steel fuel tank manufacturer that today trades as Titan Environmental Ltd. 1976 Sec-form introduces the first insulated panel onto the market 1980 The insulation division is born as Shelter Insulations Ltd after the company purchases the technology to manufacture thermal insulation boards for flat roof & wall lining from a company in the US 1981 Shelter Insulation commissions a rigid urethane insulation manufacturing line in Castleblayney 1986 After exporting to the UK from Castleblayney for two years, Kingscourt Construction acquires the insulation business of Torvale Group Ltd in Pembridge, establishing a manufacturing plant in the UK 1989 Kingscourt Construction Group is renamed Kingspan Group 1989 Kingspan begins trading on the Unlisted securities market in Dublin, at a share price of 76p with a market cap of £20.0m 1990 Kingspan enters the Dutch market with Kuiper van der Kooij working as an agent. Years later Kingspan acquires the business 1990 Shelter Insulation grows with the acquisition of Plaschem from BPB and is renamed Shelter-Plaschem and instantly becomes the market leader 1991 The acquisition of Coolag further strengthens the Insulation Division's position in the market place 1993 The combined Shelter-Plaschem / Coolag business is renamed Kingspan Insulation, and its product range is the first in the market to become CFC-free, 2 years ahead of the Montreal Protocol deadline 1994 Kingspan purchases a modern factory in Holywell, where it installs state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities. It also establishes a base in Germany and Belgium to help drive EU market penetration forward 1995 Kingspan joins the official lists of the Dublin and London stock exchanges 1995 Considerable resources are put in place to drive the switch from traditional built-up systems to composite panels, making the Kingspan brand synonymous with panel & insulation 1996 Kingspan Insulation acquires Kooltherm Insulation Ltd, and begins manufacturing phenolic insulation boards under the Kingspan Kooltherm name 1996 Environmental division grows with acquisition of Titan Tanks, Polmeric and Armet Plastics 1998 Kingspan acquires a panel manufacturing facility in the Czech Republic to focus on developing markets in Central Europe 1998 Kingspan acquires Ward Building Components 1998 The Kyoto protocol is adopted by the EU targeting significant reductions in CO2 emissions, that over the coming years will lead to a review of the energy efficiency of building regulations in Europe 1999 Kingspan enters the raised access floor market through the acquisition of Heweston Plc & Durabella, giving Kingspan the number one market position in the UK & Ireland for raised access floors 1999 The Group also acquires Plastech, Ferham, Klargester and Entec that add to the range and volume of products in the Environmental Division 2000 A number of major capital expenditure investments are completed including the installation of new manufacturing lines for Panels, Insulation & Access Floors 2000 Environmental division grows with investment in new manufacturing site in Poland. Klargester Wastewater Solutions join the Group 2001 Kingspan acquires Tate Global Corporation, the leading raised access floor business in the USA, introducing Kingspan to the American market 2002 A phenolic insulation board business in Holland is acquired & a state-of-the-art phenolic insulation board manufacturing facility is commissioned at Pembridge 2002 New Building Regulations, Part L, are introduced & the demand for more thermally efficient products drives further trade. Square meterage sales of insulation increase by over 260% 2002 A revolutionary new CPL pipe insulation manufacturing line is installed at Kingspan Insulation’s Glossop, UK facility 2003 Kingspan focuses on the areas of thermal efficiency, fire ratings and structural capability. Kingspan also enters the Australian and New Zealand markets 2003 There is a systematic rollout of European activities, significant capital expenditure to increase capacity at the Pembridge plant. Titan Eko begins to penetrate the Scandinavian markets 2003 Kingspan Insulation products are HCFC-free with zero ozone depletion potential, a year ahead of EU deadlines 2004 Kingspan reaches new heights after further expansion sees the Group's EBITA exceed €100m. Off-site building solutions are increasingly at the core of the Group strategy 2005 Kingspan commissions a new manufacturing plant in Hungary to meet demand for panels in the growing Central & Eastern European markets 2006 Kingspan increases its geographic footprint to meet the growing demand for building solutions with the acquisition of manufacturing facilities in Turkey & Australia 2006 A Kingspan flag is taken to the highest point in the world by Steve Harvey from our New Zealand office who climbed Mount Everest. Kingspan Panels begins manufacturing in Sydney, Australia 2007 A €100m investment is made in the Insulation division to meet market demand. This investment includes new Kooltherm insulation board manufacturing lines in Ireland & Holland & another line in the UK 2007 After gaining access to the Canadian market through the acquisition of Zer–O–Loc in 2006, Kingspan acquire Coldmatic Building Systems, a manufacturing facility outside Toronto 2007 Kingspan Renewables is formed with acquisition of Thermomax Solar vacuum tube brand 2008 The acquisition of Metecno, the second largest manufacturer of composite panels in the US is complete, giving unrivalled geographical reach when combined with existing Canadian market leadership 2008 Kingspan Insulation opens a new state-of-the-art large-scale insulation board manufacturing facility in North Yorkshire 2008 A second larger volume CPL pipe insulation manufacturing line is installed at Kingspan Insulation’s Glossop, UK facility 2008 A new modernised logo is introduced 2008 Kingspan Insulation moves its Dutch phenolic insulation board manufacturing to a new-state-of-the-art manufacturing facility at Tiel 2008 Kingspan Renewables announces a new facility in Portadown, Northern Ireland 2009 Kingspan acquires a market-leading distributor of flexible reflective insulation foil products – the Australian company AIR-CELL Innovations Pty 2009 Kingspan Insulation assumes full responsibility globally for the KoolDuct pre-insulated Ducting System 2010 Broadcasting Place in Leeds, which uses the Kingspan Corten Façade system, is named the World’s Best Tall Building by the Council on Tall Buildings & Urban Habitat beating Dubai’s Burj Khalifa 2011 Kingspan Wind acquires the world-leading wind energy business 2011 Kingspan acquires CRH Insulation Europe (CIE), consolidating its position as Europe’s number one high performance insulation, and providing a platform for longer-term growth in continental Europe 2012 Kingspan Insulation launches a new vacuum insulation panel (VIP) under the Optim-R™ name 2012 Kingspan Insulation products are used in the construction of the London 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Village, Aquatics Centre, Copper Box, Media Centre & the Olympic Stadium in Stratford 2012 The New Zealand women’s sailing duo of Jo Aleh & Polly Powrie, also known as Team Jolly and sponsored by Kingspan, speed to a gold medal at the London Olympics 2012 Kingspan Insulation moves the production of Kingspan TEK structural insulated panels to the manufacturing plant at Sherburn-in-Elmet 2012 Kingspan acquires the European insulated panels business, ThyssenKrupp Construction Group & Rigidal Industries LLC, a Middle Eastern manufacturer of composite panels & roofing systems, and Vic West in North America 2013 A revolutionary new vacuum insulation panel manufacturing line, is installed at Kingspan Insulation’s Pembridge, UK facility 2014 Kingspan Insulation acquires Pactiv Corp’s North American building products business, including a manufacturing plant at Winchester, near Washington D.C. 2014 Kingspan acquires PAL including manufacturing plants in Dubai, UAE and Mumbai, India 2014 The Zero Energy Lighting product set is launched 2014 Kingspan Insulation commissions a new insulation board manufacturing line at Burkhardtsdorf, Germany 2015 Kingspan Insulation acquires the opposite half of the Kingspan Tarec Industrial Insulation joint venture, comprising the joint venture partner’s manufacturing site in Turnhout, Belgium 2015 Kingspan wins the Building Awards. In the same year Kingspan also enters the Cleanrooms market 2015 Kingspan Insulation starts work on a new state-of the-art large-scale phenolic insulation board manufacturing line, warehousing and offices in Melbourne, Australia 2015 QuadCore™ is launched. A quantum leap in panel insulation technology, delivering leading thermal performance, a 40 year guarantee, superior fire protection & enhanced environmental credentials 2015 Kingspan makes further acquisitions in Europe with Joris Ide 2015 Kingspan Insulation acquires SPU Oy with a manufacturing plants in Kankaanpaa, Finland and sales offices throughout the Baltic region 2016 Focus on Australasian markets requires Kingspan Insulation to invest in new state of the art manufacturing facility in Melbourne & Tankworks Australia joins the Environmental division. New Insulated Panels manufacturing facilities are under construction in the UAE, Belgium and North America. Kingspan begins manufacturing in Mexico 2016 Kingspan Light + Air Division is born, through the acquisition of Essmann and STG Beikirch in Germany, Ecodis in France and Bristolite in California 2017 Kingspan opens a new office in Singapore to prepare for growth in Asian markets 2017 The acquisition of leading Brazilian insulated panel company, Isoeste, strengthens Kingspan's position in the Latin America market 2018 Acquiring Synthesia Group gives Kingspan a leading position in both Insulated Panels and Insulation Boards on the Iberian Peninsula and strengthens its emerging Insulated Panels presence in Central and South America. It also provides an excellent technology platform enabling the upcycling of PET into Kingspan insulation 2018 Kingspan acquires Balex Metal sp. z.o.o., a Polish based manufacturer of Insulated Panels and Insulation Boards with ﬁve manufacturing sites 2019 Kingspan strengthens its position in France with the acquisition of Group Bacacier SAS, an integrated metal profiling and insulated panel distributor, with an extensive network across France 2019 Kingspan opens its new global innovation centre - IKON - dedicated to research in advanced materials and the digitalisation of construction 2019 Kingpsan launches its ambitious 10-year Planet Passionate sustainability programme, which aims to impact three big global issues: climate change; circularity; and protection of our natural world 2020 The Kingspan Light + Air division further expands with the acquisition of Colt Group, a market leader in providing and servicing innovative solutions and products for smoke control, ventilation, solar shading and climate control projects Interested in our company’s story? 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