Building Fires Due to Poor Professional Handling Not Cladding Material, Court Hears

Combustible cladding does not inherently pose risks when used responsibly in building design, but can lead to significant material hazards if handled carelessly by professionals, a court was told. The Federal Court is currently hearing a case against German manufacturer 3A Composites and its Australian distributor, Halifax Vogel Group (HVG), concerning cladding linked to several major fires worldwide. Incidents include the tragic Grenfell Tower blaze in London in July 2017, which resulted in 72 deaths, and the non-fatal Lacrosse fire in Melbourne in November 2014. The lawsuit centres on 3A’s Alucobond PE and Plus products, which the court heard contains a combustible polyethylene core encased in aluminium sheeting....