1840
Edward Parry lore
Early slag-wool anecdotes in iron districts.
Mineral wool did not arrive as a finished commodity. Slag wool 19th c.; glass wool 1930s around US / Germany / Denmark still explains who makes it and which tests it sits in.
Ten dated points, five eras and three milestones below are the spine — not a complete industrial history.
Where it began
Slag wool 19th c.; glass wool 1930sUS / Germany / Denmark
Timeline
1840Edward Parry lore
Early slag-wool anecdotes in iron districts.
1871US slag wool
C.C. Hall and others industrialise mineral fibres.
1931–38Owens-Corning glass wool
Games Slayter’s glass wool process.
1937ROCKWOOL Denmark
Stone wool as a branded building product.
1970sEnergy-crisis batts
Cavity walls filled at scale.
1980sBinder formaldehyde
Indoor-air debates; later low-emitting binders.
1990sEN 13162
European product standard for MW.
2000sRainscreen boards
Dual-density façades.
2010sHigh-rise A1 politics
After cladding fires, non-combustible insulation gained code weight.
2020sCircularity
Take-back of offcuts; still not a closed bottle loop.
The eras
1931–38
Owens-Corning glass wool
Games Slayter’s glass wool process.
1970s
Energy-crisis batts
Cavity walls filled at scale.
1990s
EN 13162
European product standard for MW.
2010s
High-rise A1 politics
After cladding fires, non-combustible insulation gained code weight.
Milestones
ROCKWOOL Denmark
1937Stone wool as a branded building product.
EN 13162
1990sEuropean product standard for MW.
Circularity
2020sTake-back of offcuts; still not a closed bottle loop.
Knowing this timeline is how to read a mill certificate without treating Mineral wool as timeless.
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