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Lapolla Looks to Expand SPF Marketing, Signs Deal with HVAC Expert Ron Smith

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

More items for Building Envelope

Lapolla Industries, a manufacturer and supplier of spray-foam insulation and cool-roof coatings, announced an agreement with the HVAC expert Ron Smith that the company says will expand awareness of spray polyurethane foam in the HVAC trade.

Smith, author of the books “HVAC Spells Wealth” and “HVAC Light Commercial Service Agreements,” will help Lapolla to further awareness of the energy-efficiency contributions of SPF within the HVAC community, the company says.

Ron Smith

“Ron Smith is clearly one of the most recognized and the most respected professionals in the HVAC industry,” said Lapolla President and CEO Doug Kramer. “Through Ron Smith’s due diligence on the value of spray polyurethane foam, we believe that he can assist Lapolla in educating the entire HVAC community to the collective value of this superior technology.”

Kramer said Lapolla’s recently initiated HVAC Approved Applicator Program “is quickly gaining traction,” and said the alliance with Smith will help to “further awareness within the HVAC community.”

Lapolla said HVAC contractors are in a strong position to educate the homeowner on ways to improve home energy efficiency. “Spray foam and HVAC are two critical building-science components that will relate to efficiency and comfort in one’s home and most importantly reduce energy bills up to 45%,” the company said.

Smith, noting that 65,000 HVAC dealers operate in the U.S., said Lapolla offers an opportunity to those companies to implement spray-foam insulation into their business as a way to generate additional revenue.

Lapolla Industries, based in Houston, is a manufacturer of spray-foam and cool-roof coating products for commercial, industrial and residential applications in the roofing and insulation construction industries.

Company Reports Strong Sales Gain in First Quarter

Lapolla also reported record-high sales in the first quarter, as revenue rose more than 34%, to nearly $18 million from $13.4 million in the same quarter of 2010. The company, however, reported a net loss of $448,531, due primarily to to higher selling, general and administrative costs. Net income of $164,424 was reported for the first quarter of 2010.

First-quarter foam sales rose $2,955,054, or 24.9%, and coatings sales increased $1,613,195, or 105.2%, from the first quarter of 2010.

The company said higher sales were the result of “continued market penetration and higher consumer demand attributed to cost-conscious residential and commercial building owners transitioning from traditional fiberglass insulation and roofing systems to energy efficient SPF and acrylic coatings.”