Bill Brian Jensen not only saw the heating expenses for his Story City, Iowa, excavating company drop from 25 to nearly 40 percent after installing the HIGH-R® Insulation System in the building’s ceiling, he also found his construction machinery performs better during the winter season.

“I really didn’t have anything for insulation in the building before, and I was having really high heating costs,” says Jensen, who started the business in 1997.

Jensen says he noticed the savings immediately after the HIGH-R Insulation System was installed in the building’s ceiling in November 2008. Two furnaces that typically ran nonstop began to shut down within minutes after Jensen turned them on each day because the building reached the desired temperature more quickly and maintained it for longer periods of time. Heating bills that were averaging $800 per month before the HIGH-R system was installed dropped by $200 to $300 a month afterward.

Unlike some traditional insulating methods where sheets of urethane are installed between trusses just below the decking of a metal building roof, HIGH-R Insulation System panels are mounted onto clips attached to the purlins at the base of the trusses. The cavity between the purlins and the roof decking is then filled with blown fiberglass, allowing for R-40 or greater insulation.

As an added bonus, Jensen who provides snow removal service in addition to his regular excavating work, found that the warmer building protected the hydraulic systems of his equipment, increasing its reliability.

“Everything runs a lot better,” Jensen says, adding the HIGH-R system also reduces noise inside the shop, making it a more pleasant environment for his crew.

Based upon his first-year results, Jensen says he is planning to install the system to his building’s interior walls.