Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a support structure for fire rated wall panelling or cladding ( referred to hereinafter as "panelling" or "panels" for ease of reference ) for buildings , particularly fire rated thermally insulated external wall panelling for houses , blocks of flats , of fice buildings and the like .

Background to the Invention

External panelling or cladding for buildings which inhibits the spread of smoke and fire within buildings is now recognised as extremely important , particularly in the context of high-rise housing . It is also important that such cladding or panelling acts as an ef fective barrier to the spread of fire and smoke from an external source to internal areas of a building .

Hitherto , external panelling or cladding has been found to provide , at best , limited resistance to the spread of fire and smoke into and within a building with distressing consequences . Indeed, in many cases it has been shown that external panelling or cladding has contributed to the spread of fire and smoke .

Fire rated panelling for cladding walls of buildings which provides enhanced protection against the spread of smoke and fire is the subj ect of the Applicant ' s co-pending patent applications GB2019013 . 8 , GB2102571 . 3 and GB2017840 . 6 .

Panelling as disclosed in this co-pending application is particularly advantageous when used for cladding the external walls of buildings whose construction includes f ire resistant insulated internal and/or external walls produced from panels as disclosed and claimed in the Applicant ' s aforementioned copending patent applications .

Essentially, such panels include sheets of compacted inert vitreous silicate mineral wool sandwiched between and adhered on at least one side to rigid oriented strand boards by means of an adhesive sealant which intumesces in the presence of fire or excessive heat .

The present invention sets out to provide a wall mounted support structure for fire-rated panelling for cladding external and/or internal walls of buildings to provide enhanced protection against the spread of smoke and fire .

Summary of the Invention

In a preferred aspect the invention provides a support structure for panelling for cladding external and/or internal walls of a building, the support structure comprising a frame which includes a plurality of spaced generally hori zontal elongate cross members each secured to and supported by a plurality of spaced generally vertical elongate members , and a plurality of spacing members for connecting the frame to a wall o f a building, each spacing member including a base bordered on two opposite sides by side members which extend generally normal to said base and which include means by which the side members can be connected one to wall of a building and the other to said frame , the distance between the side members of each spacing member equating to a required spacing for ventilation purposes between the cladding and the wall , and an intumescent material applied to a plurality of said spacing members .

Intumescent material may additionally be applied to a plurality of said support members . Preferably, the side members of each spacing member extend from the base in opposite directions .

Preferably the side members are metallic .

Brief ion of the

The invention wil l now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings in which : -

Figure 1 is a plan view of a support structure in accordance with the invention;

Figure 2 is an isomeric view of the support structure illustrated in Figure 1 ;

Figure 3 is an isomeric view of a spacing member similar to that shown in Figure 2 ; and

Figure 4 is an isomeric view of a further support member which forms part of the illustrated structure .

Detailed Description of the Invention

The support structure illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 comprises an open framework which includes a plurality of inter-connected hori zontal and vertical elongate metallic rail members 10 , 12 respectively secured by rectangular spacing members 14 to an external wall 16 of a building . The external wall 16 is preferably lined with sheets of insulation material .

The hori zontal rail members 10 are typically fixed to the vertical rail members 12 at between 300mm and 350mm intervals . Each rail member has an intumescent coating or seal fitted to its wall facing surface , the thickness of the seal being matched to the space between the respective rail member and the wall . Thus , in the event of a fire , the expanded intumescent completely fills the space between the rail member and the wal l to prevent the upward passage of smoke and flames . In this way, a fire is contained .

In a preferred arrangement , the building is constructed using panelling as disclosed in Applicant ' s co-pending patent application GB2019013 . 8 .

As will be seen from Figure 3 , each spacing member 14 comprises a generally rectangular base 18 bordered on opposite sides by side members 20 , 23 which extend in opposite directions each normal to the base 18 . Screw holes are formed in the side members 20 , 22 to enable the members to be connected both to the wall and to the framework .

The rail members 10 , 12 are of "L" shaped construction and are typically produced from steel , preferably stainless steel .

As shown in Figure 4 , the rail members 10 , 12 generally include strips of intumescent material 24 to provide an ef fective barrier against fire and smoke passing to the interior of the building . Similar strips of intumescent material are secured to surfaces of the spacing members 14 .

For timber framed buildings and buildings produced from timber panels such as disclosed in Applicant ' s co-pending patent application GB202012021 ) , the presence of such strips of intumescent material is of especial importance .

As will be seen from Figure 1 , wall cladding panels 26 are supported by the illustrated structure .

Other species of cladding to that illustrated could equally well be supported by the illustrated structure .

The cladding panels 26 are spaced from the insulation wall panels secured to the wall by the spacing members 14 , this spacing being consistent with that set by building regulations . Thermal insulation materials may subsequently be positioned within this spacing .

It will be appreciated that the foregoing is merely exemplary of fire rated wall panelling in accordance with the invention and that various modi fications can be made without departing from the true scope of the invention as set out in the appended claims .