Made in Germany: The Business Magazine

Insulation panels make buildings look like they’ve been swathed in cotton, at least until the plaster and paint have been applied over them. It may look a bit odd, but for the Sto company in the Black Forest, it’s very big business.Heating prices have been rising steadily, and national governments are pushing for reductions in CO2 emissions - so many homeowners around the world are using the white panels to insulate their houses. The manufacturers of building insulation have been reporting annual growth of seven percent for the past several years. Sto employs more than 4,000 people worldwide, half of them in Germany. And this year, the company expects sales to reach one billion euros. Insulating a single-family house costs at least 16,000 euros, but it can reduce heating costs by more than 60 percent. So the market for this sector is huge. MADE IN GERMANY reporter Christian Pricelius met property owners who are in the process of getting their houses refitted for energy efficiency.