facilities management
flame-RetaRDant HenKel aDHesiVes UseD On inDUstRY-fiRst a2 sPanDRel Panels
provide both extremely quick building encapsulation and fire-retardant properties in accordance with the latest regulations. notably, the company worked in close liaison with adhesive expert Henkel to identify the optimum flame-retardant bonding product for the panels. in a construction market still reeling from the tragic grenfell tower fire in 2017, the resulting speedpanel a2 glass and speedpanel a2 aluminium carry an independently certified fire rating of a2-s1 d0, creating a huge UsP for the company and opening up vast market potential in both new build and replacement façade projects. “Unfortunately, many spandrel panel
s
manufacturers still state that their products are fire-rated to a1 as they make their products from a1-rated materials,” says fraser Brown, regional director at speedclad. “in truth, however, once these materials combine to form a composite panel, any individual material fire rating doesn’t mean the a1 rating still stands”
The challenge
speedpanel insulated composite panels use adhesives to bond various materials together. However, achieving the required a2-s1 d0 fire rating for the panel is challenging as many adhesives feature solvents, isocyanates or PVc, all of which are highly flammable. “for this reason, we opted to partner with
Henkel, to develop a panel construction using a flame-retardant adhesive,” states Brown. “as a result of our collaboration we now have a suite of industry-first aluminium and glass-faced spandrel panels that have been independently tested by Warrington fire to achieve a2-s1 d0, in accordance with Bs en 13501-1 2018, thus giving specifiers, clients and contractors complete peace-of-mind. moreover, compared to fitting a conventional double-glazed unit - with its supplementary insulation and associated framework - speedpanel is far quicker.”
RegulaToRy changes
in november 2018, the government announced changes to Regulation 7 of the Building Regulations in order to ban the use of combustible material in the external walls of certain high-rise buildings in england. the newly introduced Regulation 7(2) states: “Building work shall be carried out so that materials which become part of an external wall, or specified attachment, of a relevant building are of european classification a2-s1 d0 or class a1 classified.” generally all materials should comply with a
minimum fire classification of a2 s3 d2. However, if a building falls within the ‘relevant building’ class, this fire classification is redundant and all
materials need to be a2-s1 d0 rated, effectively a higher level of classification. ‘Relevant buildings’ include residential and institutional buildings that are more than 18m high. “making a non-combustible product that
complies with a2-s1 d0, particularly one that relies on adhesives, is a tall order,” says Brown. “We have only managed to overcome this difficulty by working in partnership with expert companies like Henkel.”
PRoducT sTRucTuRe
in terms of composition, speedpanel a2 glass features a steel rear tray, an insulated (mineral
wool) core, a proprietary interlayer and a glass front face that is available in the full grey scale from white to black. the same composition applies to speedpanel a2 aluminium (powder coated or anodised in a wide range of colours), minus the specialist interlayer. any composite panel built of several materials and sold as a single panel - even if the materials are individually a1 fire-certified (as is the case with speedpanel) - will require re-certification as the complete panel. “We initially considered mechanically fixing
the front and back trays using non-combustible fasteners, although this was dismissed due to
peedpanel, part of the speedclad group of businesses, has developed a range of insulated composite spandrel panels that
34 jUlY/aUgUst 2021 | factORY&HanDlingsOlUtiOns
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74
