Highly-acclaimed golfer, Shane Lowry, is coming under increasing scrutiny to sever his sponsorship ties with Kingspan, an insulation firm that could potentially face strong condemnation in the impending final report from the Grenfell Tower inquiry due this week. As a notable sponsor to the Ryder Cup competitor, Kingspan’s logo is prominently displayed on Lowry’s golf attire. However, up until now, Lowry has pushed back against appeals from the grieving and survivors of the disastrous 2017 blaze to abandon his financial support with the company, which supplied some of the flammable insulation implicated in the tower’s catastrophic refurbishment.
Over the past weekend, Lowry was contending in the FedEx Cup in Atlanta, Georgia, where he participated with other top-tier golfers for the lucrative $25m first prize. Lowry entered into the sponsorship contract with Kingspan merely a month before the tragic incident, and he expresses his elation over the support from one of Ireland’s internationally successful companies on his website.
Throughout the progression of the Grenfell inquiry sessions, Kingspan found itself accused by inquiry counsel Richard Millett KC of malpractice in various areas including the development, testing, promotion, and sale of a certain foam insulation product and also misleading the marketplace about the safety standards and compliance of the product suitable for high-rise buildings. Kingspan admitted to a few errors in their processes but denied that any were instrumental in causing the fire.
Ed Daffarn, a member of the Grenfell United (GU) group of victims’ families, stated in regard to Lowry that they have been reaching out to him for years, pleading him to renounce the sponsorship. Lowry’s non-response has been highly distressing and upsetting to them. Final judgment on Kingspan’s level of responsibility is anticipated in the last public inquiry report set to be published this Wednesday, along with verdicts about other companies including Arconic, a cladding firm, and Celotex, which supplied the bulk of the flammable insulation in use.
The Guardian attempted to reach out to Horizon Sports, Lowry’s management agency, for a statement. Lowry, aged 37, has amassed almost $27m in winnings from his golf career according to the Spotrac website. It is worth noting that in 2021, appeals from survivors and grieving successfully led the Mercedes Formula One team to relinquish Kingspan’s car sponsorship, which was driven by seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton.
Kingspan, a sponsor of the Ulster Rugby’s stadium situated in Belfast, stood firm against a push from a Northern Irish council and the Grenfell United survivors group to terminate the arrangement. The previous year, Grenfell United gave a presentation to councillors of Derry and Strabane, providing evidence such as emails demonstrating that when questioned by a potential customer regarding the appropriateness of the flammable product for use in tall buildings, one staff member derisively told a colleague that the enquirer could “go f**k themselves” and warned of potential legal action if they persisted.
In July 2023, subsequent to the council passing a motion encouraging the rugby club to discontinue their relationship with Kingspan, the company reached out to the council, requesting a modification in the meeting minutes wherein a councillor allegedly attributed the spread of fire to the “Kingspan cladding”. Kingspan disputed this, asserting that the primary cause was the aluminium composite panels.
Following an examination, the initial phase of the inquiry revealed that the primary contributor to the fire spread was the plastic-filled cladding panels, produced by a distinct firm, Arconic. However, it was found that the flammable insulation, majority of which was produced by Celotex with a portion from Kingspan, “facilitated the speed and degree of vertical flame spread”. The minutes remained unedited by the council.
Kingspan subsequently expressed frustration over a Grenfell United presentation delivered by Karim Mussilhy, who lost his uncle to the fire, and last-residing escapee Anthony Roncolato. They pointed fingers at Kingspan for some of the deaths, given their product was in use. Kingspan rebukes this by referencing professional testimony submitted to the inquiry that claims “the combustibility of the insulation present within the facade system on the tower had no significant impact” on the catastrophe.
Kingspan disclosed earlier that the shirt and stadium sponsorship contract with Ulster Rugby would be discontinued in 2025, framing it as “a natural stepping-off point” following a two-decade-long partnership. Kingspan refrained from commenting on the sponsor-related controversies. Credit: Guardian.