Koala Insulation of Denver Central

This past week I had the honor of working alongside our field team on a project in Snowmass Village, CO. Because it was a holiday week it was difficult to find a team willing to put in the drive and the hours to get the job done that we only found out about just two days before. The job?, a 3,525 square foot loose fill removal, air seal, hatch treatments, roof vent installation, and blown in cellulose to R60. This job should have taken a long day to complete. Instead, the 40 yard dumpster that was a half a football field away was finally full with about 250 black bags stuffed by hand with 60+ year old mineral wool insulation 16 hours into the job by what may have appeared as a pack of coal miners. At 8:07 pm the second day we were on the road with the job completed and the 130 degree attic in the rear view mirror. When Koala Insulation of Denver Central opened its doors in August of 2022 we had no idea what we were getting ourselves involved in. We were going to hire people to run the company and sit back and collect checks; at least that was the 'plan'. We had a very difficult removal nearly 2 months in and I had asked a sales person to help on the job while I was obligated to be at the construction site for my full time gig. My installers informed me that he went up to the attic for about 10 minutes but then came down and left because it was too hot. I fired him, but not because I wanted him to be an installer. He was dismissed because his actions told the installers that they weren't 'as good' and I knew he would never be respected as a result. Not long after, I quit my well paying day job and jumped in to build our company. We're nearly two years young now in this first week of July of 2024 and we've had the pleasure to build a company that has over 150 Google reviews (only 2 of which are 1 stars from people that we never actually dealt with and 2 are 4 stars). It is our people in the field that have earned that feedback. Those that know us know it has been a rough two years, but our employees have stuck in there the entire time even though some have come and gone. What's more is that God has provided EVERY time we've needed Him. We've been humbled and blessed these past two years on a journey that will help us change the perception of what a contractor is for our customers and our employees. As I reflect on our anniversary I wanted to send a message and a reminder that the most important people we have are the ones getting the work done. It isn't the CEO, the sales team, or anyone else. It is the front line. My recommendation? Roll your sleeves up once in a while and crawl into the trenches with them to show them how valuable and respected they really are. Not only are these the ones getting the job done, they are the ones that need more help outside of work more than anyone else. What can you do to bless them?

To the unsung hero... Several times over the past week I found myself inside a home that just had some serious upgrades to the windows, HVAC, or something else with the intent of that improvement being the answer to discomfort or soaring utility bills. A system by at least one definition is a group of interacting or interrelated elements that act according to a set of rules to form a unified whole. Most buildings meet this definition or are comprised with a collection of systems. Insulation is only one part of a system better known as the building envelope. The envelope consists of windows, siding, insulation, and other critical building components all designed to keep the air that you pay to heat and cool in and the outside environment out. The scope of insulation is beyond just the fiberglass most people think about in their walls or attics. In recent years building science and increased its focus on how tight buildings are and has included through the building code various standards for how tight is a safe range. In thinking about the age-old term 'leaky house' to describe a home, there are countless areas where air can leave or enter a house through penetrations or gaps in the building's various assemblies. If all those holes and gaps were added together, the result is essentially a window without glass. The leakier the house, the bigger the window. This is where air sealing (just one other responsibility of the insulator) comes in and works to reduce the size of that window. It is estimated that 90% of homes are under insulated regardless of age and the percentage of homes that are leakier than building code standards is likely much higher. When making the decision to make improvements for comfort and efficiency, insulation is one option that is cost effective and will provide a return on the investment forever. It certainly isn't as flashy as the new windows, heat pump, or car in the driveway, but it is probably the one component of the system that does a lot more work than people give it credit for. #koalainsulationofdenvercentral #koalainsulation #empowerbrands #unsunghero #insulation #airsealing

THE Entrepreneurial Operating System requires very specific roles for the system to work. Let me introduce the Visionary (myself Greg Cooper, MBA, PMP...the little guy on the right) and Integrator (Adam Paul) of Koala Insulation of Denver Central. While I may be responsible for overall trajectory, big ideas, culture, vision, and strategic partnerships; the Integrator keeps the train on the tracks. Adam is awesome with systems, process, team building, and keeping my crazy ideas in check. It would be unfair to take credit for the guidance in the journey we've embarked on. Christopher Fagnant was the first herald for us of this great system. He gifted me the book 'Traction' for my 40th B-day. Less than one year later I had the pleasure of being in the audience of the Architect of EOS at the Empower Brands annual conference in Vegas which even included autographs (I returned an autographed copy of Traction to my good friend). "Hark" Herold is our EOS Implementer and his guidance and support has provided great value in our adoption of the System and decision making process alongside the original design from Gino Wickman himself. The System has allowed, encouraged, and provided guide rails for my wife of 18 years to play a critical role in the Business Administration of the business which happens to be well outside her comfort zone after being a stay-at-home mom and home schooling our boys for over 17 years. She has always been awesome in every way but now it is extremely exciting to see her venture into this new and transitional chapter as the children mature from daily oversight and care. A special thanks to Trishia Duncan (Heynen) for her visit to our office this week. She may now better understand our ambitions, tenacity, grit, and capabilities; but minimally, we understand her true desire to help in our success. We're thankful to Scott Zide, Cory Lyons and the entire Koala Insulation and Empower Brands Leadership Team for spearheading the effort to put in place a System (EOS) that nearly guarantees success for those that follow it. With this effort, Koala Insulation of Denver Central will in partnership with other Koala Insulation Branches and other Empower Brands Companies reshape the perception of what a contractor is for our customers and, as or maybe mos importantly, our employees.

THE Entrepreneurial Operating System requires very specific roles for the system to work. Let me introduce the Visionary (myself Greg Cooper, MBA, PMP...the little guy on the right) and Integrator (Adam Paul) of Koala Insulation of Denver Central. While I may be responsible for overall trajectory, big ideas, culture, vision, and strategic partnerships; the Integrator keeps the train on the tracks. Adam is awesome with systems, process, team building, and keeping my crazy ideas in check. It would be unfair to take credit for the guidance in the journey we've embarked on. Christopher Fagnant was the first herald for us of this great system. He gifted me the book 'Traction' for my 40th B-day. Less than one year later I had the pleasure of being in the audience of the Architect of EOS at the Empower Brands annual conference in Vegas which even included autographs (I returned an autographed copy of Traction to my good friend). "Hark" Herold is our EOS Implementer and his guidance and support has provided great value in our adoption of the System and decision making process alongside the original design from Gino Wickman himself. The System has allowed, encouraged, and provided guide rails for my wife of 18 years to play a critical role in the Business Administration of the business which happens to be well outside her comfort zone after being a stay-at-home mom and home schooling our boys for over 17 years. She has always been awesome in every way but now it is extremely exciting to see her venture into this new and transitional chapter as the children mature from daily oversight and care. A special thanks to Trishia Duncan (Heynen) for her visit to our office this week. She may now better understand our ambitions, tenacity, grit, and capabilities; but minimally, we understand her true desire to help in our success. We're thankful to Scott Zide, Cory Lyons and the entire Koala Insulation and Empower Brands Leadership Team for spearheading the effort to put in place a System (EOS) that nearly guarantees success for those that follow it. With this effort, Koala Insulation of Denver Central will in partnership with other Koala Insulation Branches and other Empower Brands Companies reshape the perception of what a contractor is for our customers and, as or maybe mos importantly, our employees.

What is Passive Building? This is a set of Principles that is becoming more popular and will likely be headed to a neighborhood near you. It promotes a consistent thermal envelope that minimizes thermal bridging to improve energy efficiency while improving indoor air quality through means of carefully designed active ventilation to balance heat and moisture within the building. While this may increase the initial construction costs of a building by 3-5%, the benefits of the savings on utility bills and increased health and safety of the indoor environment outweigh the costs. So what does all this mean? No drafts, low temperature fluctuations, a well balanced and designed ventilation system that minimizes load requirements, high performance windows and doors that optimize solar gain appropriate for the season, and a real path toward carbon neutrality in our buildings. What's more is that this set of building standards does not have a meaningful impact on the aesthetics of building design. The snapshot in this post is from a pretty good looking 900 sf ADU we just completed insulation scope on. Pre-drywall, the build performed at 0.9 ACH. This is incredible considering its small size. If you consider that the standard building code requires 3.0 ACH on a typical home and increases the allowable leakage to 4.0 ACH for buildings smaller than 500 sf. [ACH means Air Changes Per Hour and is tantamount to how leaky a house is. This measurement is impacted by the the area of windows and doors compared to the surface area of the exterior sheathing which is what makes a lower number so difficult on a smaller building. Think, more windows = higher chance for leaks] Often, Passive building design can be obtained a number of ways. Our favorite is with spray foam. Have questions about your Passive Building Project? Please don't hesitate to reach out to Koala Insulation of Denver Central! 720-590-8463 #koalainsulation #passivebuildingdesign #carbonneutral #sprayfoam