Resources Archives

Handling & Storage of Mineral Wool Insulated Panels

Mineral Wool (MW) panels have different characteristics to other core type panels. One of these differences is in handling and storage of panels on site. Installation crews may be very experienced with traditional insulated panels however some of the practices used for handling these panels are UNACCEPTABLE when handling MW panels.

Watch this helpful video to learn the correct method for handling and installing MW panels.

Site Storage of panels

Upon delivery to site the packs of MW panels must be stored on a flat, level and stable surface, preferably concrete

Packs of MW panels must be stored to ensure the panels do not get wet. The factory wrapping may not be adequate to ensure the panels remain completely dry so additional protection should be used, preferably store the panels indoors.

When lifting packs of MW panels by forklift always lift at the marked lifting points.

Separating the top panel from the stack

When separating the top MW panel from a pack of MW panels one end of the panel should be slid slightly to one side of the pack. This enables workers to lift the end of the MW panel by gripping under the bottom skin of the panel.

Never lift a MW panel by the top skin only.

Lifting equipment

Selection of the correct equipment to lift and install the MW panels is dependent upon several factors;

Length and thickness of the MW panels to be lifted,
Landing location of the MW panels above/below floor level,
Any rough terrain/sloping surface etc that the lifting equipment will need to travel on and,
General accessibility of the site.

This is not an exhaustive list and individual site requirements must be considered in equipment selection.

The correct vacuum lifter must have multiple suction heads. The use of vacuum lifters with a single suction head is not recommended.

Once the correct vacuum lifter has been sourced and correctly located onto the MW panel one end of the panel must be slid slightly to one side of the remaining MW panels in the pack. The panel to be lifted with the vacuum lifter must then be manually lifted enough to break the suction between the MW panels before the vacuum lifter takes the panel weight.

Correctly locating of vacuum lifter on the panel

Correctly locating the vacuum lifter on the MW panel will help avoid damage to the panel.

The suction heads of the vacuum lifter should be located 70% of the length of the panel from what will become the bottom of the panel when the panel is in the vertical position.

When a vacuum lifter with extension arms is used the 70% distance is measured from what will be the bottom of the panel to what will be the lowest suction heads when the panel is in the vertical position.

Carefully conduct a test lift to confirm the vacuum lifter is in the correct location.

Jerking or sudden lifting of the vacuum lifter is to be avoided as this raises the risk of the top skin separating from the core of the panel.

Potential consequences

The key to the successful use of MW panels is to ensure the panel core remains completely dry and securely glued to the steel skins.

Incorrect handling or storage of MW panels can result in delamination or creasing of the panel.

What is Solar Absorptance?

Solar Absorptance and its Effect on Building Material Efficiency in Australia

What is the right colour and what is allowable under the NCC?

Our buildings’ colour palette today is very different to that of 50 years ago. The Australia of the 1950’s & 60’s had lots of red brick walls and dark coloured roofs, reminiscent of the colours of a much colder climate.

These changes are part of a natural process of evolution of trends in our society, but to a larger degree reflect the adaptation of our architecture to better suit the Australian climate, as well as our greater awareness of the impact this will have on the health of our environment. Designs that take advantage of natural air flow for instance, and colours that help absorb or reflect the heat depending on the climate zone are some of the many factors influencing this change.

Since the late 1990’s there has been a shift away from dark colours, particularly for roofing. This has been championed by changes in the BlueScope Steel colour palette over this period and also changes to acceptable building practices under the NCC.

This process has continued with the latest changes introduced in NCC Volume One for commercial roofs and Volume Two for residential roofs and walls. Dark coloured roofs will no longer be permitted under the Deemed to Satisfy (DtS) provisions. Commercial buildings will need a light-coloured roof, with all climate zones (except for Climate Zone 8) requiring a maximum solar absorptance of 0.45 to comply. This means that any commercial roof assessed under the DtS provisions will need to be Surfmist®, Classic Cream™, Paperbark®, Shale Grey™ or Evening Haze®. All medium or dark coloured roofs, including “green” roofs, dark concrete and membrane roofs require a performance-based solution to demonstrate compliance. For residential buildings in climate zones 1 to 4, the solar absorptance of the upper surface of a roof must not be more than 0.64, the solar absorptance of the outer surface of a wall must not be more than 0.7.

Deemed to Satisfy

Performance Solution

Bondor Metecno Insulated Penels: acceptable external roof skin colours based on BlueScope's guidelines on max skin temperature
	Exposure Category
	1	2	3	4
EPS-FR core (< 80°C)	Classic Cream™	Classic Cream™	Classic Cream™	Classic Cream™
	Surfmist®	Surfmist®	Surfmist®	Surfmist®
	Paperbark®	Paperbark®	Paperbark®	Paperbark®
	Shale Grey™	Shale Grey™	Shale Grey™	Shale Grey™
	Dune®	Dune®	Dune®	Dune®
	Pale Eucalypt®^	Pale Eucalypt®	Pale Eucalypt®	Pale Eucalypt®
	Manor Red®^	Manor Red®^	Manor Red®	Manor Red®
	Basalt®^	Basalt®^	Basalt®	Basalt®
	Woodland Grey®^	Woodland Grey®^	Woodland Grey®^	Woodland Grey®

	Exposure Category
	1	2	3	4
PIR core (< 100°C)	Classic Cream™	Classic Cream™	Classic Cream™	Classic Cream™
	Surfmist®	Surfmist®	Surfmist®	Surfmist®
	Paperbark®	Paperbark®	Paperbark®	Paperbark®
	Shale Grey™	Shale Grey™	Shale Grey™	Shale Grey™
	Dune®	Dune®	Dune®	Dune®
	Pale Eucalypt®	Pale Eucalypt®	Pale Eucalypt®	Pale Eucalypt®
	Manor Red®	Manor Red®	Manor Red®	Manor Red®
	Basalt®	Basalt®	Basalt®	Basalt®
	Woodland Grey®	Woodland Grey®	Woodland Grey®	Woodland Grey®

^ Limited warranties apply - contact Bondor Metecno for more information

So, what is Solar Absorptance?

Solar Absorptance (SA) is the fraction of the total incident solar radiation that is absorbed by the roofing material, with the remainder being reflected. SA is expressed as a ratio between 0 and 1. A roof with a lower SA will absorb less heat, compared to a roof with a higher SA, which will help in keeping the roof space and the building cooler.

For detailed information on NCC Volumes One and Two please refer to the ABCB website. Volume One of NCC primarily regulates multi-residential, commercial, industrial and public assembly buildings and some associated structures. NCC Volume One requires the Solar Absorptance of the upper surface of the roof to be less than or equal to 0.45 for the DtS pathway. Roof surfaces with SA greater than 0.45 must use the Performance Solution pathway to compliance.

What does this mean for insulated panel colours?

Bondor Metecno are guided by the NCC and the BlueScope’s recommendations for appropriate colours, with the addition of special requirements specific to insulated panel. Bondor Metecno panels acceptable external colours based on COLORBOND’s guidelines of maximum skin temperature can be seen below

Bondor Metecno panel's acceptable external roof skin Solar absorptance values based on BlueScope's guidelines on max skin temperatures
Application	Roof - max solar absorptance value
Panel Type	Exposure Category
Panel Type	1	2	3	4
EPS-FR (< 80°C)	0.54	0.62	0.69	0.75
Mineral Wool and PIR (< 100°C)	0.75	0.96	0.96	0.96

Exposure category 1	Exposure category 3
Wilcannia, Oodnadatta, Swan Hill, Mardie	Toowoomba, Mackay, Cooma, Port Stephens, Omeo, Gladstone, Bowral, Lithgow, Bright

Exposure category 2	Exposure category 4
Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Townsville, Adelaide, Perth, Cairns	Hobart, Launceston, Devonport

FM Approval

Architects and builders may be requested by their client to design and construct buildings with FM Approved products to meet a specific FM insurance requirement. FM Approvals certifies industrial and commercial products and services for companies worldwide. They have developed their own internal suite of standards for evaluating the potential performance of building materials to better assesses risk for insurance purposes. FM Approvals include both a rigorous testing regime and yearly auditing of manufacturers facilities to ensure that the initial standard is maintained.

As rigorous as FM Approval’s standards are, the National Construction Code (NCC) requirements must be met independently and override insurer or FM Approval requirements. The NCC has been developed to incorporate all on-site construction requirements into a single code. The Building Code of Australia (BCA) forms part of the NCC, which pertains to all Building Classes, and is produced and maintained by the Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB). It is a uniform set of technical provisions for the design and construction of buildings throughout Australia, and forms the basis of building certifications and approvals.

FM 4880 Standard

FM 4880 Approval Standard for Class 1 Fire Rating of Insulated Panels, Interior Finish Materials, or Coatings and Exteriors Wall Systems evaluates a panel’s ability to contribute to a fire in a variety of different ways, through a small corner test or larger scale corner test. FM 4880 Approval for Class 1 Fire rating has two grades available:

Class 1 Limited Height – Products must to pass a 25 foot corner test and various other testing;
Class 1 No Height Restriction – Products must pass a 50 foot corner test and various other testing.

FM 4881 Standard

FM 4881 Approval Standard for Class 1 Exterior Wall Systems provides a wide range of Approval ratings to allow manufacturers to target exterior wall systems for almost any geographic area, up to and including cyclone-prone regions. This Standard addresses the natural hazards to which exterior walls are commonly exposed, including the cyclic nature of high-wind events (eg. tropical cyclones), and the impact of windborne debris.

Exterior wall systems must first meet the requirements for Class 1 Fire Rating (FM 4880) and are then tested as necessary for ‘wind load rating’, ‘windborne debris resistance’, and ‘Hail-resistance ratings’.

FM 4471 Standard

FM 4471 Approval Standard for Class 1 Panel Roofs states the requirements for meeting the criteria of this Standard for fire, wind, foot traffic and hail damage resistance.

It sets performance requirements for panel roofs, which includes all components necessary for installation of the panel roof assembly as a whole, including the potential for fire spread on the underside and exterior of the roof panel, and its ability to resist simulated wind uplift resistance, whilst maintaining adequate strength and durability.

Bondor’s FM Accreditations

Bondor’s MetecnoPanel® and Flameguard® satisfy the requirements for Class 1 approval, and as such have achieved FM Approval 4880 No Height Restriction. MetecnoPanel also satisfies the requirements for FM Approval 4881 No Height Restriction.

MetecnoSpan® satisfies the requirement for FM Approval 4880 No Height Restriction, FM Approval 4881 No Height Restriction and FM Approval 4471. For further technical information on FM Approval’s 4471, 4880 and 4881, please refer to the documents below.

Sustainability

Bondor Is Invested in Sustainable Environmental Performance.

Bondor® is committed to the continual improvement of our environmental practices and maintaining sustainable building practices, evident throughout involvement with PACIA’s Sustainability Leadership Development Framework. We are committed to using recyclable or reusable materials wherever possible. All of our products are non-ozone depleting and thermally efficient, which saves in energy costs and benefits the environment. Our range of products are backed by Environmental Product Declarations (click to view). These EPD’s are based on Life Cycle Assessment with ISO 14025 and EN 15804:2012+A2:2019 providing a comprehensive scope of cradle to gate (with options).

Recyclability

The COLORBOND® steel skins of all Bondor® insulated panels are 100% recyclable and have been made by BlueScope® Steel with 10-30% recycled scrap. Bondor® uses fully reusable or recyclable EPS-FR cores for many of its products, and proudly support the ESPA (Recycling Expanded Polystyrene Australia) initiative.

Reuseability

Bondor’s insulated sandwich panels can be easily dissembled to be reused and reconstructed for other applications.

Reduction

Bondor’s insulated panels contribute significantly to reducing the amount of energy used to keep Australian buildings within comfortable temperature range, as they provide reliable insulation and a wall/ceiling/roof in one product. The panels also have the ability to provide continuous insulation that reduces or eliminates thermal bridging, compared to standard framed construction methods which can have disrupted insulation (which has significant contribution of heat loss/gain through thermal bridging).

All of Bondor’s insulated sandwich panels reduce the amount of material used in the construction process, which reduces landfill over standard framed construction methods (as they’re custom made to order).

Australia’s Health

Bondor’s insulated panels use non-ozone depleting pentane to blow its insulating core for EPS-FR and PIR, and the mineral fibre uses air entrapment, helping to promote a sustainable construction method to protect Australia’s future. These panels provide a consistent level of insulation that is impervious to compression, water vapor, vermin, termites and rot, which decreases the risks of structural damage whilst improving the living quality for Australia.

These insulated panel products also contribute to Australia through their ‘buildability;’ as they significantly shorten the construction times, which provides economic, social and environmental benefits to the community.

Local manufacturing

With manufacturing sites in each state, Bondor not only supports local industry but also reduces the number and length of transport journeys to site, reducing transport related carbon immissions in the construction process.