" Sandwich panels for external cladding - fire safety issues and implications for the risk assessment process" is a ground-breaking Report, researched and written by Dr Gordon M E Cooke BSc PhD CEng MIMechE MICE FIFireE, International Fire Safety Consultant & Visiting Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, City University, London. It is available as ISBN 0 - 954 2078 - 0 - 7.
Click HERE to download The Cooke Report pdf.

The Cooke Report contains valuable information for everyone concerned with fire safety and the built environment as typified by contemporary sandwich panel buildings - superstores, factories, warehouses, offices, stadia, prisons, schools and hospitals all over the UK.

 Demonstrates that fire safety guidance is essential for external sandwich panel cladding - the building    envelope.

 Maintains that the risk posed by combustible-cored sandwich panels in the external building envelope, as    well as that for internal partitioning, should be recognised by building owners, employers and designers for    the purposes of their risk assessments. It is contended that none of the risk assessment guidance    currently available helps the specifier to come to a decision as to whether or not the risk in using    combustible-cored panels is acceptable.

 Confirms that combustible-cored sandwich panels are today being used in building envelopes other than    those for low life-risk warehousing and temperature-controlled environments. Schools, hospitals, prisons,    retail outlets and other public buildings make use of this type of construction without appropriate regulation    or guidance.

 Highlights the advantages of sandwich panel construction which offers fast track, cost-effective energy    efficient building envelopes, with an array of aesthetically pleasing shapes and finishes. It points out that    sandwich panels which incorporate non-combustible insulation cores and properly attached steel faces,    can be safely specified in all relevant building applications.

 Emphasises the fact that sandwich panels with combustible foamed plastic insulation cores - polystyrene    and polyurethane materials - carry the risk of being a potential hazard in fire. Official DETR guidance    currently recognises this risk in Appendix F of Approved Document B of the Building Regulations Fire    Safety 2000 Edition, but only for internal structures. However it is advisable that a risk assessment be    carried out to determine the suitability of combustible-cored sandwich panels for external cladding and in    other applications.

 Reviews a number of ad hoc fire tests currently being used to provide data on the fire performance of    sandwich panels. It demonstrates that the fire sources used in these tests are smaller than the fire sources    generally present in UK buildings. Therefore the data obtained from such tests could give employers,    designers and regulators a misleading view of fire safety.

 Stresses the responsibilities of people and their need for information - where a risk to property and    business economies exists, and where a risk of environmental contamination [air and water] is identified,    then owners, employers and designers should be appraised of the advantages of choosing sandwich panels    with non-combustible insulation cores.