DUBAI // There is no building cladding crisis in the UAE, said the director of Dubai Civil Defence.
Maj Gen Rashid Al Matroushi said on the sidelines of the 6th annual Fire Safety Technology Forum UAE that exterior cladding of buildings were not a problem unless improperly installed or of very poor quality.
“We are addressing bad construction practices, but civil defence officers cannot monitor every step of the process. Where is the official going to be when they are installing something on the high floors,” he said.
“However, we, along with Dubai Municipality, will conduct regular checks.”
Maj Gen Al Matroushi said that he wanted to make sure that all building materials used were authorised and in line with the UAE Fire and Life Safety Code, which outlines the rules and regulations pertaining to cladding material.
“There are some who may be cheating when it comes to the materials used in buildings.”
An amended fire and life safety code, which is to be released in the next two weeks, will include fines levied on building consultants should faulty fire safety material be discovered by civil defence inspectors.
Manufacturers who sell building materials not approved by authorities will for the first time face prosecution under new provisions in the updated fire safety code.
The speed at which flames took hold of the Address Downtown Dubai hotel on New Year’s Eve prompted authorities to clamp down on the use of combustible plastic-filled aluminium composite panels.
Yet the most fire-retardant wall panels were still not being used on buildings across the country despite the blazes.
Three of the world’s top aluminium composite panel makers confirmed that demand for their highest-rated panels was almost non-existent across the region.
An updated building code introduced in Dubai in 2012 aimed at halting the use of flammable aluminium composite panels was still not being fully implemented because of the high cost of system tests.
Barry Lynham, president of Fire Safe Europe, said the insulation content of the cladding was of importance.
“It’s not really a question about having cladding or not having cladding, it’s more about the system passing the right tests for fire safety.”
dmoukhallati@thenational.ae
