Cladding Systems Failed Government-Commissioned Fire Tests In 2004

A series of cladding systems failed fire tests carried out for the government in 2004, but the results were never revealed before the materials were installed on thousands of buildings. A research report first obtained by the BBC shows 10 external wall systems were subjected to fire tests as officials sought to develop a new testing methodology for cladding in the mid-2000s. The document shows systems containing materials such as high-pressure laminate (HPL), expanded polystyrene and phenolic insulation failed the tests. These systems are currently being removed from thousands of buildings around the UK, in many cases at the cost of individual leaseholders. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/cladding-systems-failed-government-commissioned-fire-tests-in-2004-leaked-document-reveals-72558?utm_source=Housing60&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article_link&utm_campaign=H60 

Grenfell Cladding Boss Denies ‘Deliberate Concealment’ Of Test Results

The president of Arconic has denied that it was “deliberate concealment” not to tell British regulators that its cladding product had burned in a test, the Grenfell inquiry has heard. Claude Schmidt said that the British Board of Agrément (BBA) “could have found out” about the test results of its Reynobond PE cassettes, which were installed as part of Grenfell Tower’s refurbishment. In 2005, the firm had tested two versions of its Reynobond PE cladding. The first had been on a riveted form of the product, which had resulted in a Euroclass B rating, allowing it to be used on the external walls of high rise buildings. The second was on a folded version which had “performed disastrously”, releasing seven times more heat and three times as much smoke than the riveted version. Read more on the Housing Today website.

https://www.housingtoday.co.uk/news/grenfell-cladding-boss-denies-deliberate-concealment-of-test-results/5110507.article

Fire Test For Grenfell Foam Cladding Panels Was Rigged

Executives who sold combustible insulation for use on Grenfell Tower perpetrated a “fraud on the market” by rigging a fire test and making “misleading” claims about it. Celotex, a subsidiary of the French construction materials company Saint-Gobain, behaved in a “completely unethical” way, admitted Jonathan Roper, a former assistant product manager. Roper worked on two fire tests of the foam panels and subsequent sales plans as the company tried to grab a slice of a £10m-a-year insulation foam market. In the Grenfell fire on 14 June 2017, the foam, known as RS5000, fuelled the flames and released toxic gases and smoke. The foam was withdrawn from the market nine days later. Read more on the Guardian website.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/nov/16/fire-test-for-grenfell-foam-cladding-panels-was-rigged-admits-ex-employee