The New York City Department of Buildings (NYC DOB) Materials and Equipment Acceptance (MEA) Division has granted The Dow Chemical Company four new MEA approvals – MEA 334-06-M, 335-06-M, 336-06-M and 337-06-M. These new approvals allow up to 4” of STYROFOAM™ extruded polystyrene insulation or up to 4” of THERMAX™ polyisocyanurate insulation in both steel stud and block and brick wall assemblies.¹
With these approvals, our customers can now specify STYROFOAM and THERMAX insulations for non-combustible construction without the previously required 3” of un-pierced masonry around window and door openings. Avoiding that labor-intensive and costly step of “turning the brick” should expand opportunity to use these insulating products in metropolitan New York City.
The new MEA approvals were granted after the wall assemblies met all of the NYC MEA requirements including Underwriters Laboratories Inc. (UL) test requirements for a one-hour fire rated steel stud wall assembly and a four-hour fire rated block/brick assembly.
With 1” R-values of 5.0 for STYROFOAM and 6.5 for THERMAX, these insulations will not only help meet new energy codes, they can add to a building’s USGBC Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design™ (LEED) Green Building rating. The reduction in energy consumption lowers the owner’s operating costs and reduces greenhouse gas emissions. And that’s good news for everyone!
® TM Trademark of The Dow Chemical Company (“Dow”) or an affiliated company of Dow
LEED is a trademark of the U.S. Green Building Council
¹ Confirm additional code requirements that may impact insulation thickness.
For Editorial Information:
Laura Joseph
The Dow Chemical Company
989-638-3038
