ACM Aluminium Composite Panel Bans in Australia

What it is

An aluminium composite panel (ACP or ACM) is a flat sandwich panel with two thin aluminium skins bonded to a plastic core. The core gives the panel its weight and its insulation rating. It is also where the fire risk sits. A pure polyethylene (PE100) core melts and drips, then burns hot enough to spread fire vertically up a facade. The Grenfell Tower fire in London and the earlier Lacrosse Tower fire in Melbourne both ran on PE-cored ACP.

Australian states responded with product bans. The bans are not uniform. NSW, Victoria and Queensland each took a slightly different position on which buildings are caught, which core compositions are blocked and what owners and builders have to do about panels already in the wall.

NSW: the 30% PE rule

In NSW, the Commissioner for Fair Trading issued a Building Product Use Ban on 10 August 2018 under the Building Products (Safety) Act 2017. The ban took effect on 15 August 2018. It prohibits the use of ACPs with a core comprised of more than 30% polyethylene by mass in any external cladding, external wall, external insulation, facade or rendered finish.

The ban catches Type A and Type B construction buildings of a defined minimum storey count. It applies to new work and to existing buildings constructed before the ban. Penalties run up to $1.1 million for corporations and $220,000 for individuals.

The NSW Government also runs the Cladding Register. Owners of certain class 2, 3 and 9 buildings have an obligation to register if the building contains external combustible cladding. Registered buildings can be inspected and issued an Affected Building Notice, which triggers further action by Fire and Rescue NSW or the local council.

Victoria: the 93% inert rule

Victoria took a harder line. From 1 February 2021, building approvals can no longer be issued for the installation of ACPs containing a core with less than 93% inert mineral filler. In plain numbers, that is a 7% polyethylene ceiling, much tighter than the NSW 30% mark.

Victoria also banned the use of Performance Solutions in combustible cladding scenarios. Where the NCC normally allows a designer to propose an alternative path, the Victorian rules close that path for combustible facade material. The Victorian Cladding Taskforce and Cladding Safety Victoria (CSV) run the rectification program funded by the state.

Queensland and the other states

Queensland addresses the issue through the Chain of Responsibility provisions in the Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991. Under section 74AF, every person in the supply chain (designer, importer, manufacturer, supplier, installer) has a duty to ensure a non-conforming product is not supplied or installed. The QBCC runs the Safer Buildings program to identify cladding risk in private buildings.

South Australia, Western Australia, ACT and Tasmania each rely on a mix of state-level guidance and the NCC. The practical effect across the country is that PE100 cored ACP cannot be installed on the regulated facade of any multi-storey building. Storage in a yard or use on a single-storey shed is not banned. Use on the wrong building is.

Rectification orders and who pays

Under the NSW Building Products (Safety) Act 2017, the enforcement authority can issue a Building Product Rectification Order on the owner of an affected building. The order can require the owner to remove the panel, replace it with a compliant product and restore the facade. The cost falls on the owner unless contractual rights against the original builder or supplier are still alive.

Victoria has gone further by funding rectification on eligible private residential buildings through CSV. The funding model is the exception, not the norm. In most jurisdictions the owner pays first and recovers from the supply chain later.

What to check before ordering panel

Ask the supplier for one of three documents before any ACP arrives on site: a current CodeMark certificate that lists the specific product and its scope of use, a current test report against AS 5113 from an accredited laboratory or a manufacturer declaration of core composition with supporting test data. PE100 panels are still legal to import. They are not legal to install on a regulated facade. The paperwork is what proves which one you ordered.