One of the main advantages of Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) for building designers has always been the fact that strength, dimensional stability, insulation, and acoustic performance are built into the panel design. Performance is guaranteed without the need for additional treatments and coatings.
As leading innovators in SIP technology, Innovaré Systems is taking those advantages several steps forward. i-FAST is a new generation of SIP that guarantees even greater performance in the key areas of:
- Fire safety,
- Acoustic performance,
- Structure
- Thermal insulation.
The i-FAST system allows architects, contractors, specifiers and inspectors to be confident that the building will achieve an inherent minimum level of performance. With this guaranteed performance comes greater flexibility to choose linings and cladding.
Fire safety and flame propagation properties understandably have a very high priority in the design of modern structural and infill systems. The i-FAST boards and integral stone wool insulation are A1 rated (non-combustible) for fire safety according to the Euroclass fire safety rating system, and surface spread of flame rating class 0 for fire propagation. These are the highest ratings possible when it comes to combustibility and flame propagation.
A staggered stud arrangement reduces thermal bridging and acoustic transmission whilst allowing protection of the stud in a fire scenario. This allows a unique proposal of a standalone panel system that exceeds 60 minutes fire resistance without reliance on additional lining boards.
Built-In Performance
Strength and stability comes from the protected timber stud framing. Staggering the studs has the additional advantage of reducing repeatable thermal bridging losses. The in-built thermal performance of the panels is exceptional, with U-values from 0.28 – 0.12 W/m²·K depending on the panel thickness, cladding and lining. Air tightness is further enhanced by the factory fitted vapour control layer.
Acoustic performance is equally impressive. The sound transmission rating for a standard panel configuration is RW 56 dB. This can be further upgraded to RW 60-62 dB with an additional gypsum layer on one or both sides. When used as an external panel behind brick cladding the performance will exceed RW 70 dB. Because the inner and outer boards are physically isolated there is excellent resistance to both airborne and impact noise.
As with all Innovaré Systems products, the panels can be used to form the building structure or as infill. All components of the panel are recyclable, and CE marked and BBA certified.
The i-FAST panel gives architects, designers and customers even more reasons to specify panelised offsite using SIPs as the preferred building method, particularly as the system is fully supported by our in-house design, manufacturing and installation teams for complete control over the entire project. Find out more about the i-FAST system from Innovaré here.
