This is not a rock – turning technical performance into brand power

Client

Hjaltelin Stahl / Rockwool International

Year

2010-2011

Summary

Rockwool turns stone into insulation. We helped them turn that into meaning.

The “Create & Protect” platform reframed their entire product offering—from commodity material to emotional benefit. Anchored in the line This is not a rock, the brand was reintroduced through human stories, smart tools, and content designed to solve real-world problems.

The result? A digital-first brand narrative that made technical performance feel personal—and made Rockwool relevant again.

My Role

As lead digital creative on the project, I took part in:

  • Translating the brand insight into visual execution
  • Designing the microsite UI/UX across multiple concept versions
  • Developing and refining the digital content hierarchy and visual identity
  • Leading art direction across campaign and platform assets
  • Contributing to animation and motion principles for online content
  • Aligning the final execution with both brand guidelines and future-proof scalability

 

As nothing ever gets done on its own, this project was done in cooperation with a lot talented colleagues from Hjaltelin Stahl.

The Challenge

Rockwool had strong technical credibility but low brand affinity. Despite being a global leader in insulation, acoustic ceilings, and façade cladding, they lacked emotional connection with decision-makers and users. Their offering was broad, but fragmented. Their communication: safe, static, and under-leveraged.

The challenge was to reposition Rockwool from a trusted materials supplier into a performance-driven brand with purpose—one that speaks directly to modern concerns like fire safety, sustainability, and comfort without losing its engineering edge.

The Approach

We built a unified narrative around a simple truth: this isn’t just insulation. It’s what protects people, enables design, and improves quality of life.

At the heart of the campaign was the brand essence “Create & Protect”—a positioning that spanned emotional benefit and technical proof. We structured the work around three core pillars:

  1. Emotional storytelling to humanize product performance

  2. Branded tools and content to deliver utility and proof

  3. Segment-specific targeting across specifiers, building owners, and homeowners

Every touchpoint worked to reframe Rockwool as essential, not optional.

Tools

We designed a suite of branded tools that made Rockwool’s performance claims tangible. These included:

  • Energy savings calculators

  • Fire resistance timers

  • Acoustic simulation modules

  • Sustainability and lifecycle insights

 

The tools were featured prominently across the platform and embedded into banners, not hidden in footers. They acted as conversion drivers, engagement boosters, and credibility builders—especially for specifiers and building professionals seeking real-world validation.

Banners

Display was treated as a functional media layer—not just awareness. We developed interactive banners that included:

  • Mini-tool functionality like m²-based energy savings

  • Contextual messaging based on campaign themes

  • Smart linking to topic-specific content (e.g. fire safety, acoustics)

  • Copy built around “This is not a rock” and direct benefit lines

 

These banners were not just brand impressions—they were content delivery mechanisms, driving qualified engagement back to the platform.

Site

The core of the experience lived at createandprotect.net—a responsive, modular campaign site designed for both performance and storytelling.

Key features:

  • Segmented UX for architects, building owners, and homeowners

  • Content filtering by topic: Fire safety, energy efficiency, sustainability, acoustics

  • Integrated media: video, tools, articles, and guides

  • Scalable design system based on the “Create & Protect” visual model

 

It didn’t look like a campaign microsite. It looked like a brand taking itself seriously online.

Outcome

The campaign helped Rockwool:

  • Reposition from a product to a purpose-driven brand

  • Increase awareness of its full envelope offering (insulation, panels, ceilings)

  • Engage specifiers earlier in the decision-making funnel

  • Build a scalable platform for future content and category launches

 

It proved that even a B2B insulation brand can lead with story, structure, and strategy—and still perform.