America’s commercial real estate sector is aging rapidly, with nearly 75 percent of the nation’s 5.9 million commercial buildings now over 25 years old, and 21 percent built before 1960.
According to revised figures from the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS), “Buildings built between 1960 and 1999 accounted for more than 50% of both total number of buildings and of floorspace. The median year of construction was 1981”.
These older structures represent prime opportunities for façade and envelope retrofits, especially as sustainability, efficiency, and occupant comfort become top priorities for building owners. With HVAC systems accounting for 35 to 40 percent of total energy consumption in commercial properties, upgrading the building envelope offers one of the most impactful ways to boost performance and reduce utility costs.
“Retrofitting is where operational excellence meets future readiness. It’s how organizations cut costs, meet mandates, and create better environments for the people inside them,” says facilities management leader ABM. “Energy retrofits aren’t just a sustainability initiative. They’re a business decision grounded in economics, regulation, and building performance.”
Retrofitting buildings with insulated metal panels (IMPs) is an ideal solution for aging facilities, delivering superior thermal performance, streamlined installation, and long-term maintenance savings. IMP retrofit wall systems can be installed using existing framing (whether metal columns and beams, wood construction, or concrete and CMU substrates) helping reduce thermal loads and drive significant energy and cost savings for building operators.
Read on to discover how upgrading your building envelope with IMPs from Green Span Profiles can help future-proof your facility while enhancing performance and value.
Building owners looking to upgrade their properties often face a key question: should they undertake a full replacement or retrofit with modern materials? In many cases, retrofitting with IMPs delivers substantial economic advantages while enhancing building value and performance.
Retrofitting with IMPs is typically far more cost-effective than a complete teardown and rebuild. By installing IMPs over existing roofs or walls, property owners can avoid the expense and disruption associated with removing old materials. This direct-over retrofit method eliminates costly tear-off procedures, reducing demolition waste and shortening project timelines.
Beyond the bottom line, investing in a retrofit with IMPs addresses many of the challenges older commercial and industrial buildings face. Modern IMP systems bolster a building’s energy efficiency, extend its lifespan by improving weather resistance, and can bring outdated façades up to current code and safety standards. As a bonus, IMPS can also transform curb appeal.
Retrofitting IMPs onto existing structures differs from ground-up construction because the new panels rely on the building’s current framing for support and load transfer. Careful evaluation of several factors is crucial to a successful retrofit:
By evaluating these framing factors, building owners and design teams can ensure secure, high-performance retrofits that maximize both energy efficiency and longevity.
Retrofit IMPs require substrate-specific attachment strategies for a secure, long-lasting installation.
Older commercial buildings often perform poorly in terms of thermal resistance. Many uninsulated metal buildings have R-values as low as R-1 to R-2, while older fiberglass-insulated assemblies typically drop to R-6 to R-9 due to compression or moisture intrusion. Tilt-wall and CMU walls usually range from R-4 to R-6, and pre-2000 cold storage facilities are often in the R-15 to R25+ range, well below modern performance benchmarks.
By contrast, insulated metal panels (IMPs) from Green Span Profiles routinely deliver R-15 (2") to R-44+ (6"), thanks to their continuous closed-cell foam core, integrated air/vapor barrier, and resistance to compression or sag over the lifetime of the building.
These characteristics ensure that installed R-values remain more stable than traditional insulation systems. While polyisocyanurate experiences some thermal drift (typically 10-15% reduction within the first two years), the R-values then stabilize and are maintained over the building's lifetime, unlike fiberglass which can degrade from moisture intrusion or compression.
Retrofit projects using IMPs deliver measurable energy performance improvements over traditional systems:
Payback periods vary based on building type, climate zone, existing conditions, and energy costs, but typically fall within the following ranges:
|
Building Type |
Typical Payback |
|
Warehouses |
4-7 years |
|
Cold Storage |
3-5 years |
|
Manufacturing |
5-8 years |
|
Commercial/Retail |
5-10 years |
Actual payback will depend on local energy rates, operating hours, climate conditions, and the extent of retrofit work required.
Upgrading existing warehouses with IMPs or installing IMP retrofit wall systems on other commercial buildings offers one of the fastest and most cost-effective paths to:
Contact Green Span Profiles today to extend the life of your aging structure with an IMP retrofit.