The refurbishment of Grenfell Tower is a key part of the inquiry under Sir Martin Moore-Bick because the building was clad in materials that, it has since transpired, did not conform to Building Regulations. The cladding system, in conjunction with the insulation material sandwiched beneath it, acted to exacerbate the fire that killed 72 inhabitants on the night of 14th June 2017. Questions need to be answered.
On the first day of the second phase of the official inquiry the organistions listed below were cited by Michael Mansfield QC, representing victims of the fire. They all had questions to answer, he said.
Studio E – the architect
Rydon Maintenance – the design and build contractor
Harley Facades – the cladding subcontractor
Exova – the fire safety engineer
CEP – the fabricator of the aluminium composite material (ACM) panels
Artelia – the employer’s agent, quantity surveyor and CDM co-ordinator
Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea’s Building Control department
Kensington & Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation (TMO) – the client
Arconic – made and sold the ACM panels
Celotex – made and sold RS5000, the polyisocyanurate, or PIR, insulation used under the ACM panels
Kingspan – made and sold K15 Kooltherm insulation material
Siderise – made and sold the cavity barriers
Aluglaze – the window infill panels
BBA – certified Arconic’s ACM panels and Kingspan’s K15 Kooltherm
LABC – certified both the K15 Kooltherm and the 15RS5000 insulation.
Of the building products, Mr Mansfield said: “We will be particularly interested in: first, the key tests that these products underwent, particularly the Arconic ACM panels with the polyethylene core and the Celotex and Kingspan insulation; second, their resultant fire classifications; third, how those tests and classifications were represented by the manufacturers to their markets and to the two certification bodies, the LABC and the BBA; fourth, the relevant certificates issued by the BBA in the case of the ACM panels and Kingspan’s K15 Kooltherm product, and the LABC in the case of both K15 Kooltherm and the RS5000 insulation; and last, how those certificates were represented by the manufacturers to their markets, their buyers.”
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