Kingspan

[LeoMc]

...in 2006, Kingspan changed the way it made K15, introducing a new chemical process which added perforations to the foil facing of the product and increased the quantity of a 'blowing agent' held within it.

When it retested this insulation as part of a new system in 2007, it failed drastically. The test was described in an internal Kingspan document as a "raging inferno", which said the insulation was "burning on its own steam" after the flame had been extinguished. Kingspan kept this result secret, even from other arms of its own business, and continued to sell the insulation for use on high rises.


....Kingspan keep repeating that the product... is suitable for use in buildings over 18m. What they fail to say is that it is suitable only in the configuration tested," wrote Greg Sinclair, a consultant at the firm.

When the contractor came back to Kingspan with a further query as a result, Mr Heath sent an internal email to two colleagues saying: "Wintech can go f*ck themselves and if they are not careful we will sue the arse of them.



..... The inquiry was shown a series of text messages from later in 2016 sent between Mr Chalmers and another Kingspan employee referencing K15 in which Mr Chalmers said: "doesnt [sic] actually get class 0 when we test the whole product tho LOL!"

"WHAT we lied?" the other employee wrote.

"yeahhhh tested K15 as a whole – got class 1 [an inferior standard] wheyy lol," responded Mr Chalmers.


That is about more than regulations and adhering to them. That is knowingly and wilfully endangering life. There should be gaol time, for people like Phil Heath, Aaron Chalmers, etc, in Kingspan and similar in Arconic.

[Wildweasel74]

Cladding at low level is expected to be classification 0.

[johnnycool]

...in 2006, Kingspan changed the way it made K15, introducing a new chemical process which added perforations to the foil facing of the product and increased the quantity of a 'blowing agent' held within it.

When it retested this insulation as part of a new system in 2007, it failed drastically. The test was described in an internal Kingspan document as a "raging inferno", which said the insulation was "burning on its own steam" after the flame had been extinguished. Kingspan kept this result secret, even from other arms of its own business, and continued to sell the insulation for use on high rises.


....Kingspan keep repeating that the product... is suitable for use in buildings over 18m. What they fail to say is that it is suitable only in the configuration tested," wrote Greg Sinclair, a consultant at the firm.

When the contractor came back to Kingspan with a further query as a result, Mr Heath sent an internal email to two colleagues saying: "Wintech can go f*ck themselves and if they are not careful we will sue the arse of them.



..... The inquiry was shown a series of text messages from later in 2016 sent between Mr Chalmers and another Kingspan employee referencing K15 in which Mr Chalmers said: "doesnt [sic] actually get class 0 when we test the whole product tho LOL!"

"WHAT we lied?" the other employee wrote.

"yeahhhh tested K15 as a whole – got class 1 [an inferior standard] wheyy lol," responded Mr Chalmers.


That is about more than regulations and adhering to them. That is knowingly and wilfully endangering life. There should be gaol time, for people like Phil Heath, Aaron Chalmers, etc, in Kingspan and similar in Arconic.

Jail time is correct, it's the only way to prevent the corporate types from trying to get away with this type of thing. Fining the company just isn't enough on it's own. Personal responsibility needs enforced but no doubt there'll be loads of emails destroyed long before the police get access to them.

[J70]

Yep. There should absolutely be prison sentences for the shit that appears to have gone down here. How the hell do these people sleep at night? I guess there's a certain percentage of the population who are sociopaths and don't give a f**k about their fellow man, but surely they must worry that some day it would all come back to bite them personally on the arse?

And its a complete indictment of the "light touch" regulatory climate that economic right wingers would have us all live under. Yes, the regs and standards are there, but you have to have effective, robust enforcement and verification, not hands-off rubber stamping and assumed good faith.

These companies and their executives and managers need to be rigourously investigated and made examples of. Criminal charges including manslaughter.