Building jobs; Northboro company will get $1.5 million.

Byline: Sarah Gantz

WASHINGTON - Insulation made in Northboro can be found wrapped around a natural gas pipeline deep in the ocean off the coast of Brazil, packed around the electrical cables beneath the Beijing subway system and layered over the oil tank of a tractor in the French countryside.

"There is insulation everywhere - in aircraft, in homes, in appliances - you name it," said Sara Rosenberg, director of government and strategic planning for insulation manufacturer Aspen Aerogels Inc.

"Everywhere" is exactly where the Northboro-based company wants to be.

Since Aspen Aerogels was formed in 2001, its products have had "relatively exotic" uses, according to Donald R. Young, the company's chief executive officer. But with energy conservation in the national spotlight and strapped-for-cash homeowners looking to save, Aspen Aerogels would like to expand the use of its insulation in residential and commercial buildings.

The building and contracting industry is a gold mine of a market that, if tapped, could increase Aspen's client base tenfold, Mr. Young said. But the problem is that at $2 per square foot, the 10-millimeter-thick aerogel used by home and commercial contractors is too expensive.

But a $1.5 million federal government earmark could change that.

Mr. Young said the company will use the money, which is in the government spending bill passed by the Senate Tuesday and signed by President Barack Obama yesterday, to find more efficient and effective ways to manufacture its insulation.

In order to compete with conventional insulation, Mr. Young estimated the company would have to slash the cost of aerogel insulation by at least 25 percent, maybe even 33 percent. Aerogel is a flexible, silica-based insulation with the appearance of thick felt and the power to absorb up to eight times as much heat as conventional thermal insulation, according to the company.

Affordable, energy-efficient insulation has national appeal, but in Central Massachusetts, the benefits extend past the environmental conscience.

A thriving green business in Worcester County could stimulate green practices and attract new green businesses to the area, officials said.

"I've talked a lot about creating green jobs, finding ways to encourage smart conservation and this fulfills both those goals," said U.S. Rep. James P. McGovern, D-Worcester, who introduced the earmark in the fiscal 2009 spending bill that would fund the government through Sept. 30. The bill was passed by the House Feb. 25.

Aspen intends to invest the money in what Mr. Young calls fluid flow optimization - tinkering with the chemical combinations, pressure levels and pipe system involved in manufacturing aerogel insulation. Perfecting solution gelation, as Mr. Young describes the chemical-melding process, will result in significant production cost savings, he said.

"This grant will help us understand our process better" and improve its efficiency, Mr. Young said.

To install Aerogel insulation in an 800-square-foot apartment would cost about $2,000, and could save about $450 per year in energy costs, Mr. Young said.

Bob Levesque, the owner of Bob's Insulation in Sutton, estimated that if he were to insulate the same apartment with a fiberglass material, it would cost about $600, including installation costs. His fiberglass insulation, a common household insulator, costs 72 cents per square foot, he said.

But investing in energy efficient technology can be worth the cost, according to Julie A. Jacobson, assistant city manager in Worcester.

"If it could have a residential application as well as a commercial application, that's definitely something the city and any developer should be encouraged to use," she said.

Last year, the city spent $800,000 on a dozen energy efficient lighting and waste disposal projects and saved $330,000 in energy costs, she said.

She, like Mr. McGovern, said she hopes small energy-saving steps will snowball to a greener Worcester.

"It's not just what we can do to save money," Ms. Jacobson said. "It's how we can grow and expand the industry."

ART: PHOTO; CHART

CUTLINE: (PHOTO) Aspen Aerogel CEO Don Young, right, talks with employee Joe Govoni at the manufacturing plant in Northboro. (CHART) Aspen Aerogels Inc.

PHOTOG: (PHOTO) T&G Staff/CHRISTINE PETERSON