Qld government seeking ban on PE core aluminium composite panels

The Palaszczuk Government has announced they will push for a national ban on polyethylene (PE) core aluminium composite panels when Queensland hosts the national Building Minister’s Forum next week.

The move follows a decision of the Property Council of Australia to support a proposed ban on the future use and sale of 100% polyethylene (PE) core aluminium composite panels, as outlined in the recently released findings of the Senate Committee inquiry.

While current codes allow this product to be used safely within appropriate fire safety systems, heightened concern about the use of PE cladding have resulted in a shift in the perception of its suitability for future projects. 

In order to maintain the high levels of public confidence in the industry and the buildings the industry produces, the Property Council is supporting governments and the private sector in the systematic auditing of existing buildings with PE cladding to ensure the safety of existing systems.

Encouragingly, Property Council members are reporting very few instances of genuine safety risk – and are working through less critical issues that have become apparent during the review process. While the industry is taking the situation very seriously, in the overwhelming number of buildings being assessed the issues relate to non-conforming products and not immediate fire safety risk.

An immediate ban on the use of any PE cladding material in Government construction projects has also been announced by the Queensland Government.

The latest developments follow the passage of the Queensland Government’s Building and Construction Legislation (Non-conforming Building Products – Chain of Responsibility and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2017, in August which created a legal ‘Chain of Responsibility’ to tackle the issue of non-conforming products through to the point of supply or production. This is the first legislation of its type to be enacted in Australia.