Ecological Insulation
Trends selects groundbreaking topics and stories. Exie earns the label because the company contributes to a sustainable construction industry with its circular insulation materials.
Antwerp-based start-up Exie develops natural and circular insulation materials. These are CO2 negative, free of toxins, integrally reusable and fully degradable.
MATHIEU HENDRICKX "Our challenge is to convince construction companies that circular products are also a smart economic choice."
What products does Exie develop?
"Exie developed an innovative insulation product based on naturally composed hemplime", says founder Mathieu Hendrickx. "Thanks to our patented manufacturing process, that material dries much faster than classic hemplime. It is also moisture-regulating and sound-absorbing. Our second insulation solution is also fully circular. For that, we use straw flakes."
Where does the company operate?
"Our production is based in Herzele, East Flanders, but we also have foreign partners who make our products under license," Hendrickx says. "We supply all over the world, mainly in Europe, but also in Australia and the United States. Our customers are private individuals, but also wholesalers and construction companies that are consciously concerned with ecological and sustainable building."
What support does the company receive?
"Exie was founded in 2019. Financing was done with equity and external capital, and new rounds of capital are planned. From the start, we received the support of Taste Invest, a private equity player that invests in start-ups, small and medium-sized companies with the intention of achieving a social and environmental impact in addition to a financial return."
How does Exie want to grow further?
"The joint commitment Green Deal Circular Building puts pressure on traditional insulation materials. Construction companies are increasingly switching to natural alternatives. Our challenge is to convince them that the transition to circular products is not only a sustainable, but also a smart economic choice."
What is the ambition?
"We are aiming for an ambitious but realistic growth rate of about 60 percent per year. In Belgium, 48,400 houses were built and renovated last year, with an average of 75 cubic meters of insulation material. Together with the Dutch housing market, this amounts to 7.9 million cubic meters. Our short-term goal is to take 1 percent market share of that."
