FrameSafe FR, Glidevale Protect’s Class A2, fire-rated external wall breather membrane, has been installed to help improve safety standards as part of the cladding remediation works being undertaken at a major medium-rise residential development in Greater Manchester.
The Life Building in Hulme offers a wide range of living options that allow for flexible and urban living. Working on behalf of Homes England, principal contractor Cubic Facades was appointed to install full cladding remediation works to ensure full compliance with fire safety regulations in alignment with the Building Safety Regulator. Glidevale Protect was a key supply chain partner on the project, supplying fire-rated membranes in collaboration with RGB Facades, a specialist within the rainscreen cladding sector.
The mandatory remedial works involved three blocks of cladding being replaced with non-combustible materials on all external walls for the entire building envelope as well as internal courtyards, balconies and public walkways. As part of this, a fit-for-purpose, independently tested fire rated membrane was required to be used as part of the external wall build up. Glidevale Protect’s FrameSafe FR external breather membrane, which exceeds the current requirements set down in Building Regulations Approved Document B in the UK, was supplied by RGB Facades for use throughout the scheme.
The Protect FrameSafe FR breather membrane has been installed by Cubic Facades onto the external wall fire boards throughout the development to ensure integrity of fire performance and to reduce the risk of fire spread. Its Protect FR tape has also been used to seal membrane laps which creates a full wall membrane and tape system solution.
Protect FrameSafe FR and Protect FR tape products have been independently fire tested both with the membrane free hanging and as a system application fixed over A1 and A2 substrates, achieving a Class A2-s1, d0 reaction to fire.
Mike Dickinson, Commercial Director of Cubic Facades, says: “We are pleased with the overall performance of the external wall membrane for this project. It was critical that the chosen product had independent fire test data as a membrane system with tape to back up its claims and give us the confidence to fit on site. The product is easy to install and my team commented that Protect FrameSafe FR was easier to handle than other fire-rated membranes that had previously been used.”
James Smith, Head of Technical for Glidevale Protect, adds: “Fire-rated wall membranes like our own Protect FrameSafe FR product can help play a crucial role in reducing façade fire risk, as their performance can have a positive impact on the overall fire strategy of a residential development like the Life Building.
“Currently, UK Building Regulations generally class external wall membranes as exemptions to the minimum Class A2 requirements for wall structures in relevant buildings in UK Building Regulations, albeit with the exception of residential buildings above 11 metres in England, where external wall membranes must achieve a minimum of a Class B-s3, d0 rating.
“But there’s a growing industry momentum towards specifying products that future proof against minimum standards, prompting the use of fire rated materials with a higher reaction to fire classification, like Protect FrameSafe FR.” www.glidevaleprotect.com