Tony Robson elected chairman of EASE

On November 10, Tony Robson was elected as the new Chairman of EASE, the European Alliance to Save Energy. Tony's election is another demonstration of Knauf Insulation's emergence as a world leader in our sector.

 Why EASE:

EASE has as its main objective to ensure that the critical importance of energy efficiency to the well being of our society is fully recognized by policy makers in Europe. EASE brings together on its founding Board, companies such as; Siemens, Danfoss, Schneider Electric and of course Knauf Insulation. By bringing together leading companies from across the energy efficiency world, we begin the process of getting energy efficiency higher on the agenda in Europe.

Both at the EU and national level, energy efficiency's critical importance to societal issues such as climate change, energy security and job creation is not sufficiently recognized. Politicians and policy makers talk about the need for a greater focus on energy efficiency but the necessary actions to deliver on this talk is often missing. It is frequently off shore wind farms, carbon capture and storage technology and carbon based energy projects that still receive the largest share of resources. At the same time, energy efficiency companies, including Knauf Insulation, have not done enough to make it clear to politicians and governments that this is simply not good enough.

What is EASE?

EASE is the first ever advocacy organization in Brussels that brings together a range of leading energy efficiency companies under one umbrella, to fight for energy efficiency as an issue. Unlike some of our existing trade bodies in Brussels, EASE will be cross-sector, representing companies active in a range of industries.  Its focus will be broader than just insulation or buildings but rather will have as its objective to ensure that energy efficiency itself gets top priority. As EASE Board members will be the CEOs of their respective companies or divisions and given the broad range of interests represented, EASE will have the ability to make the case for energy efficiency in a new and powerful manner.

Knauf Insulation and EASE:

At Knauf Insulation we are both taking our responsibility seriously and demonstrating an important leadership role for our sector. The future of our business depends in part on ensuring the right regulatory and fiscal framework for energy efficiency measures in buildings. Whilst recent European legislation such as the newest European Energy Performance of Buildings Law drives us in the right direction, we are also fully aware that to achieve many of the objectives set out in this legislation, such as near zero energy buildings, there will need to be deep political support for action. As Chair of EASE we have an important responsibility to drive this forward, being the only insulation company on the founding Board of EASE and now as Chair.

 In Practical Terms:

Tony Robson has been elected as the Chair of EASE for three years; Whilst Barry Lynham will be acting as his alternate on the Board of EASE. Also Monica Frassoni, a former European Parliamentarian and current co-President of the European Green Party has been appointed by the Board of EASE as President.

The current Board of EASE includes: Companies: Danfoss, Knauf Insulation, Schneider Electric, Siemens and 1E, NGOs: European Climate Foundation and Kyoto Club, Politicians: Bendt Bendtsen (Christian Democrat, Denmark)Lena Ek (Liberal, Sweden), Peter Liese (Christian Democrat, Germany) and Claude Turmes (Green, Luxembourg), and the trade association: The US Alliance to Save Energy.