JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #44 - October 2008 - Special Asia - 66

USERS’ PLATFORM Successful partners Defeating flames The Australian company Ayres Composite Panels has launched an innovative fire insulation system for high-speed/lightweight commercial vehicle ferries and similar naval vessels. The system was developed in co-operation with Colbeck & Gunton (Australia) and Thermal Ceramics (UK), and it recently won a JEC Innovation Award. T he main element of the system is an epoxy/glass-faced aluminium honeycomb panel, which carries a special intumescent felt insulation layer on one side. The intumescent felt is protected from daily wear and tear by a coated glass fabric covering. This covering also makes the panels look attractive. Value creation The system is approximately half the weight of existing “steel cassette” panel systems. It saves up to 12 metric tons for a typical vessel, thus resulting in higher speed and/or higher payload and/or lower fuel consumption. The panels cost more than existing materials but a larger panel size (x3) means that only about one third of the usual time is needed to install the system. They are also easy to install, which means skilled labour is unnecessary, thus significantly reducing installation costs. Main features - Lightweight: panel weight: 4 kg/m², system weight: 4.5 kg/m² - Lower installed cost - Quick-release fastening system making it easy to access plumbing or electrical systems behind the panels whenever necessary - No loose fibres, so no health and safety problems - No corrosion compared with steel systems - Non-hygroscopic (no moisture absorption) - Attractive finish How it works These patented, lightweight insulation panels (4 kg/m²) are 2,400 x 1,200 x 16 mm. They are produced using a hot press curing process at 120°C. In the event of a fire, the ceramic fibre intumescent felt layer expands nine fold, creating an effective insulation to protect the hull from heat, which could otherwise cause the structural failure of the vessel. The aluminium honeycomb panel is also protected by its own insulation layer, so it is able to keep supporting the insulation as the fire temperature increases to around 1,000°C after 1 hour. Inside the vessels. Partnership The development started with the identification of a market demand for a lightweight fire insulation system. The customers of Ayres Composite Panels, who mainly build high-performance commercial and naval ships, are continually looking to reduce weight. Vehicle decks tend to use a lot of “steel cassette” insulation panels and Ayres thought it could do better. The company sourced commercially- Large vessel equipped with Ayres panels. available raw materials and put together a prototype panel, which was fire tested on a small-scale. Results were good, but Ayres realised that however good the panel might be, it would never supply any panels unless it developed a full system of installation joiners, sprinkler penetrations, etc. Marine fire certification rules are very strict and panels can only be certified when assembled into real-life installations with joints, etc. The company approached the leading installer of insulation systems onboard lightweight vessels with its initial fire results – the Australian company Colbeck & Gunton – who was rather impressed. The two companies therefore decided to work together. Ayres Composite Panel later found that it needed an improved JEC Composites Magazine / No44 October 2008

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #44 - October 2008 - Special Asia

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #44 - October 2008 - Special Asia