BREAKING NEWS...... - NON COMPLIANT CLADDING
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR FORMPLEX VINYL WEATHERBOARD CLIENTS ?
July 16, 2019. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews and Victorian Cladding Task force member Ted Baillieu speak to media about the release of the Victorian Cladding Task force report which identified 500 "highest risk" sites around the state in need of repair.
Just to ease your mind, let me explain how FORMPLEX WEATHERBOARDS are NOT the 'cladding' that is being referred to in the news currently.
In the news recently, many people have witnessed the awful destruction of the Grenfell Tower in London, and previously, the fire in the Lacross Tower in Melbourne.
We see it as necessary to clarify the difference between the “cladding” used on those towers, and Formplex uPVC Weatherboard cladding.
Both Grenfell and Lacross Towers were clad with an Aluminium Composite Panel (ACP). This product consists of two layers of aluminium, sandwiching an inner core of Polyethylene resin (PE). Polyethylene is a highly flammable polymer, which needs only an ignition source, and will then burn with the polymer supporting a flame and burning vigorously. This has been seen with devastating effects on these towers.
In contrast to this, the Formplex uPVC Weatherboard Cladding manufactured in Australia made from highly UV stabilized Poly Vinyl Chloride (uPVC). This polymer will not support a flame itself, and for that reason is used in common household products like power cables and other electrical components where flame resistance is required.
The polystyrene (EPS) used as an insulation on the back of some of our weatherboard cladding products is manufactured with a flame inhibitor. Formplex uPVC weatherboards have passed the stringent requirements as a system for Bushfire Attack Level 29. Details of this test can be found on enquiry. Should you have detailed enquires, please do not hesitate to contact our office