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For Owens Corning,
Pink Is the New Green

Courtesy Owens Corning

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The cheapest, most environmentally friendly type of energy is the energy that never gets used, says Mike Thaman, chairman and CEO of Owens Corning (OC). And with more than 125 million homes and 70 billion square feet of commercial buildings in the U.S. accounting for about 40 percent of the country’s total energy consumed and about 40 percent of its greenhouse gas emissions, improving energy efficiency in existing buildings is the logical place to begin cutting dependence on fossil fuels, he adds. To that end, Owens Corning, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of insulation, has launched an international campaign, Pink Is Green^TM, to promote the economic and environmental benefits of improving energy efficiency. The company says it is also working with the federal government and various states to develop public policies that encourage conservation, such as tax credits for home energy efficiency improvement, part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Thaman says Owens Corning is not new to the conservation movement. Its first major campaign around energy efficiency was during the energy crisis of the 1970s. The core message hasn’t changed, Thaman says. Whether you’re worried about the economy, the environment or both, he says, “improving the energy efficiency of residential and commercial buildings is the right thing to do.”