Fiberblade L.L.C., part of the Spanish Gamesa group, utilized more than 136,000 sq. ft. of Metl-Span insulated panels for the company’s first wind turbine blade manufacturing facility in the United States. Located in Edensburg, PA, the 183,000 sq. ft. plant will produce turbine blades up to 43 meters long for alternative energy development.

Metl-Span CF-42 panels were used in both interior and exterior applications in 2”, 3” and 4” thicknesses. The 4” Gray insulated panels were used to clad the manufacturing areas of the building where temperature control is critical in the construction of the high-tech turbine blades. The remaining 2” and 3” panels finished in Bright Red and White were utilized on the exterior of the office portion of the building plus interior walls and partitions. All panels were Mesa profile.

The facility was designed by STV Group, Inc., Douglassville, PA. According to William Keller, P.E., vice president and project manager, “The project was fast-tracked, with both design and construction occurring simultaneously, in order to meet the company’s production timetable.”

Installation of Metl-Span panels was completed by Dabmar Company, Inc., Spring City, PA. “The schedule was definitely tight,” says Dabmar’s project manager Ken Root. “But we do a lot of projects with Metl-Span and it’s definitely easy to work with. We had the 660’ building closed-in in less than 45 days. And that involved working with panels up to 55’ in some pretty windy conditions.”

Horst Construction, Lancaster, PA was the general contractor on the project.