Premier SIPS: Structural Insulated Panels

06/08/2026

NFCFS fire station/engine house and bunkhouse going up by Shell Building Systems in Northern California. Premier SIPS on walls and roof on both structures.

In WUI zones like much of Northern California, the envelope spec is not optional. Solid foam core limits oxygen flow within the assembly. Premier SIPS achieve a 1-hour fire-rated assembly per ASTM E119.

If any building has to get the envelope right, it is a fire station.

06/06/2026

Anyone can claim their product performs better.

Our SIPs Proof in Performance series backs it up with industry studies, third-party research, and measured thermal data so you can see exactly where the numbers come from.

Not marketing. Methodology.

https://hubs.ly/Q04j5tSl0

06/05/2026

This is what SIPs are designed for. Super impressive project by our Western Canadian distributor, WEST-ECO SIPs. See more below.

06/04/2026

Some people car spot. We panel spot.

06/03/2026

"SIPs are fine for a simple rectangle. What about a complex roofline?"

The award-winning American Indian Hall at Montana State University answers that question.

The design called for a curved sculptural roof built around a feather motif and walls that read as circular in form. The team specified curved custom SIPs for the roof and SIPs for the walls. All of it fabricated to spec at the shop before anything shipped to site.

The outcome: ACH50 of 1.42. LEED Platinum v4.1.

Design complexity on a SIP project does not disappear. It moves from the jobsite to the shop, where it is scheduled and controlled. That is the difference.

SIPs Used: 12" Roof & 8" Wall
Architect: Think One Architects
Structural Engineer: Morrison Maierle
Contractor: Swank Enterprises

→ Full project details: https://hubs.ly/Q04jZ2GB0

06/02/2026

If a SIP project goes sideways in the field, trace it back far enough and you'll almost always land on the same place: the shop drawing review.

The shop drawing is the fabrication document. It's what the factory uses to cut every panel. Once it's approved, that's what gets built. Catching a coordination problem before approval is a correction. Catching it after the panels are on site is a change order.

We break down what the shop drawing actually is, how it's different from the panel layout drawing, and why this review step deserves more attention than it usually gets. Read more here: https://hubs.ly/Q04jbK4f0

06/01/2026

Project update from the field.

GQue BBQ is coming to Timnath, CO, and the build is moving right along.

Commercial projects like this are where SIPs construction earns its keep. The building envelope goes up fast, the thermal performance is built in from day one, and operators end up with a tighter, more energy-efficient structure to run year after year. For a restaurant with commercial kitchen loads and HVAC demands, that matters.

SIPs Used: 8-1/4" EPS walls & roof
Architect: Frontline Design
Structural Engineer: Fortis Structural
Contractor: Frontline Construction Group

Learn more about Premier SIPs for commercial construction: https://hubs.ly/Q04jbDCz0

05/30/2026

May's SIPS TIPS is live. This month: what architects need to know before they specify SIPs, and why shop drawing review is the coordination checkpoint that makes or breaks a project.

The problems builders encounter in the field rarely start in the field. This month we go upstream — what architects need to know before they specify Structural Insulated Panels, and why the shop drawing review is the coordination checkpoint that determines whether a project succeeds or fails.

05/29/2026

Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) just move differently.

Fast installs. Clean lines. High-performance results.

05/28/2026

If you are specifying SIPs for the first time, there is one mistake almost every architect makes early.

They treat SIPs like a product swap. Same design, better insulation.

The problem: that is exactly backwards. SIPs are a building system, and the projects that perform best are designed around that system from schematic design forward.

What decisions need to be made early, what they cost if they are made late, and what the structural engineer needs to know before they begin their work. Read more here about what architects and design professionals need to know before specifying SIPs: https://hubs.ly/Q04j0nnf0