Cladding related building fires

1 Types of cladding
2 Example of fires by year group
3 Related articles on Designing Buildings.
4 External links

[edit] Types of cladding

[edit] GRP type cladding

Indication is that Glass Fibres were first demonstrated in 1893, by an American glassmaker, Edward Drummond Libbey, at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago which ran from May until October that year. Such fibres had been produced earlier but as individual examples and not mechanised. They had also been found naturally, glass formations of cooled lava stretched into thin strands, near lava fountains, cascades, or lava flows, known as Pele's hair (after the Hawaiian goddess of volcanoes) or witches' hair'.

What is now referred to as glass wool was first invented in the 1930s by researchers at Owens-Illinois, led by Games Slayter, who could produce large quantities of glass fibre efficiently and cheaply, with the first commercial product of available in 1936. Owens-Illinois also later used this fibre technology to patent a glass fibre reinforced polyester resin product which marketed under the trade name Fiberglas. Owens-Illinois later partnered with Corning to produce and refine the material, which became a significant product for both companies

Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP) rain-screen cladding was not patented as a specific product, but the underlying technology of glass fibre reinforced plastic was developed in the 1930s. The combination of glass fibres and polyester resin, which forms the basis of Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP), was pioneered by researchers like Eric Owen from Owens-Illinois in 1936. Commercial production of the material, including its use in building applications, followed in the 1930s and 1940s.

[edit] ETICS / EIFS / EWI type cladding

External Thermal Insulation Composite System (ETICS) also called Exterior Insulation and Finish System (EIFS) or simple Exterior Wall Insulation (EWI) systems are non-load-bearing cladding systems for exterior walls that provide insulation, weather resistance, and a decorative finish. They are multi-layered systems, sometimes misleadingly called synthetic stucco, with insulation boards, a reinforcing mesh, a base coat, and a finish coat, usually a decorative cement render (hence the reference to stucco).

Because the systems are multi layered there can be a variety of types with the major variation often being in the material of the rigid insulation board, which may be called PB EIFS using expanded polystyrene (EPS), PM EIFS using extruded polystyrene (XPS), phenolic resin insulation, mineral wool (MW), or graphite-enhanced EPS (G-EPS). It is the difference in specification of the rigid insulation that many critics say is key to the products fire resistance, with EPS suggested as being the worst in performance under fire situations and MW the best, although in terms of thermal performance the opposite is true with thicker build-up required by MW.

Other variations in the types of ETICS or EIFS lay in how the system is fixed to the external walls, which can be through adhesive or through a variety of framing systems. Finally the finish layer may also vary considerable with the use of materials such as a thin render finish as described but also, brick slips, stones slips, tiles, glass, metal (MCM or ACM) and potentially timber.

[edit] ACM type cladding

Metal composite material (MCM) or more specifically aluminium composite material (ACM) with a polyethylene core, a type of combustible cladding, was first developed in Germany during the 1960s. Initially used in mattress production, it was later adopted for building facades due to its appealing characteristics. The original patent for Alucobond Aluminium Composite Panels (ACM) was filed in 1971 by Alusingen, in collaboration with BASF, under the company name Alusingen (later Alusuisse) with a patent term of 20 years.

This new product ACM was a lightweight, easy to handle, relatively inexpensive, attractive option for modern construction. However, the benefits come with a significant drawback: a high fire risk. It is clear today that the product held significant risks especially when used in combination with other combustible materials or installed in certain ways for example with gaps behind facilitating fire spread. However there is very little detail documentation about façade fires from 1971 to 1991, with the first major documented cladding fire being Knowsley Heights, Merseyside, UK in 1991, which used what was called a glass reinforced plastic (GRP) rain-screen cladding. The cladding was used as part of a refurbishment project , carried out in 1998 and aimed at addressing damp issues in the building, using a Class 0 GPR cladding, a "combustible polymer material" (in the Grenfell inquiry report).

The original patent for Alucobond Aluminium Composite Panels (ACM) was filed in 1971, meaning it expired in 1991. After the patent expiry, other manufacturers like Alcoa (Reynobond), Mitsubishi (Alpolic), and Etem (Etalbond) entered the market. Reynobond 55 utilised the original ACM technology patent from 1971, and the name “Reynobond” was officially trademarked in the U.S. on October 4, 1988, with production of Reynobond panels (including the 55 model) commencing around 1989.

Warnings about the fire risks associated with ACM cladding have been present since the 1990s. Despite this, it continued to be widely used even with some serious fire incidents occurring worldwide, though in some countries, regulations did prohibit the use of ACM with polyethylene cores on tall residential and public buildings. Today this approach of limiting use on tall buildings has also been taken in the UK, after the tragic Grenfell Tower fire. However, addressing the risks of existing buildings with such cladding remains an ongoing major challenge, involving complex and costly remediation efforts. See articles Accelerating the remediation of buildings with unsafe cladding in England.

[edit] Timber type cladding

There are historically many fires associated with the use of timber, which is why taller buildings with timber cladding are quite rare. However there is an increasing popularity in massive timber structures buildings using using examples such as Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) or Encapsulated Mass Timber Construction (EMTC).

The fire rating for these larger profile product comes from treatment of the timber face along with char ratings, in which timber may burn at the surface but so long as the profile is deep enough the structural integrity remains as char that forms on the outer surfaces effectively creates a black insulating layer that protects the unburnt timber beneath. However in the case of laminated timber, under fire conditions the adhesive layers can delaminate, which means that a protective char layer that has been created can potentially fall off which exposes fresh, unburnt timber to the fire. Other issues can also be that because timber burns more slowly, it can continue to smoulder after the fire has been extinguished, which can risk reigniting or gradual reduction of structural integrity.

Another area of the use of timber in cladding is using low or medium density fibreboard bats, which are rigid insulation boards made from fine timber cuttings, indication has been that, although lower density than massive timber, these thicker boards first burn slower than plastic blown insulants and might also benefit from charring which prevents total combustion. Although this can vary depending on the details of the cladding for example if it has a cavity behind.

We have looked for specific examples of fire in modern buildings that employ these techniques and technology but have not found any. This does not mean that they do not exist, please add to the list below with references if there are examples that should be added.

[edit] Example of fires by year group

Below is a reverse timeline highlighting major fires involving cladding of different types that have occurred globally, some are high rise buildings some are not. Many of these examples mention specific cladding materials as being key contributing factors to the fire, whilst others cladding is mentioned, but not explicitly indicated as being responsible. This list is extensive but not exhaustive, as there are potentially many smaller fires that have not been well publicised. However with over 50 examples these highlight how many fires have taken place historically and as such that certainly some of the risks of said materials were known, they don't highlight why such materials continued to be used.

[edit] Fires between 2021-2025

2025 June 14 – Marina Pinnacle, Dubai, UAE A 67story residential tower fire lean on cladding; no reported injuries amongst nearly 4,000 evacuees.
2024 February 22 – Valencia Residential Complex, Spain. 14-storey Alucobond ACM (polyethylene core) facade caught fire rapidly; 10 deaths, 15 injured
2023 April 15 – AlRas Residential Building, Dubai, UAE. Fire spread via non-compliant ACM cladding; 16 deaths and 9 injuries.
2021 - Torre dei Moro (Milan) & Torre Ambar (Madrid), Italy & Spain. Fires in ACM-clad towers widely reported; flames rapidly engulfed upper floors of both.

[edit] Fires between 2016-2020

2020 - Chongqing fire, China. Ignited by flames from the balcony of the 2nd floor, and the flame spread upward to the 30th floor within just a few minutes.
2019 June 9 – Samuel Garside House, Barking, London, UK. Woodclad balconies ignited from a barbecue, destroying 10 flats; no deaths, 2 injured. Although under 18m tall, combustible cladding contributed to rapid fire spread
2019 November - Bolton Cube fire, UK. A smaller building (<18m) with combustible façade panels caught fire quickly. “The incident also brought home the danger of leaving flammable cladding on buildings.” 217 people escaped and there were no serious injuries. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-manchester-53597167
2017 Cvjetno naselje student dormitory fire, Zagreb. Fire started on the roof of the lower building. Combustible thermal insulation of the façade system and a strong wind definitely contributed to the fast spread of flames and smoke on the façade. https://www.grad.unizg.hr/images/50014277/Fire%20Protection%20of%20Facades.pdf
2017 July 14 – Marco Polo Condos, Honolulu, USA. High-rise fire damaged over 200 units; 4 deaths, 13 injured—cause undetermined but external factors suspected.
2017 June 14 – Grenfell Tower, London, UK. A fridge fire escalated into a catastrophic blaze spread by polyethylene-core ACM cladding, killing 72 and injuring 74
2016 - Astar Court, Mount Pleasant Hill, E5 (listed by the Grenfell Inquiry)
2016 - Neo Soho, Jakarta. Spread up multiple floors during construction through ACM cladding.
2016 - Ramat Gan high-rise, Israel. A minor internal fire rapidly spread externally via combustible insulation panels.