By Gary Robson, Business Development Manager at EJOT UK.
The demands on rear ventilated or rainscreen facades are increasing all the time, with today’s designs often required to deliver aesthetic excellence coupled with ever higher standards of fire safety, thermal performance and sustainability – usually within a demanding build programme.
The multiple challenges these design objectives and performance targets present mean the substructure has an increasingly important role to play. In many projects, a system-based approach is adopted to help reduce technical uncertainty and simplify delivery. However, as the performance capabilities of substructure systems, and the components that form them, varies widely, it is vital to carefully evaluate how the proposed support framing will meet the façade’s overall goals.
Substructures like EJOT CROSSFIX are multi-purpose and critical to a façade’s safety and long-term success. They must support various cladding loads, accommodate ever deeper levels of insulation, maintain strict ventilation levels and withstand the impact of fire, as well as manage movement caused by wind and thermal expansion.
Choosing ETA-backed components and systems
Façade substructures are often created using components sourced from multiple manufacturers, including rails, brackets, substrate fixings, insulation anchors and cladding fasteners. Although each product may carry its own performance credentials, proving compatibility across the complete assembly can be more complex.
Two very similar components may also have significantly different performance credentials, potentially introducing uncertainty regarding tolerances, movement allowances and responsibility for performance. All this adds risk and increases design coordination requirements.
This is one of the reasons why fully integrated systems, such as EJOT CROSSFIX, are increasingly popular. As a single engineered system manufactured from stainless steel, CROSSFIX is formed of components designed and tested to work together from the outset. This reduces the number of interfaces requiring verification and offers a clearer route to technical support – one system, one supplier.
CROSSFIX is Passivhaus certified and backed by a comprehensive European Technical Assessment (ETA), providing independently verified performance data across a range of cladding materials, substrates and design configurations. This helps project teams assess structural capability, thermal performance and durability with greater certainty.
Versatile and engineered to minimise thermal bridging, the CROSSFIX system utilises the innovative Konsole bracket. This can be used with both vertical and horizontal rails to simplify design and installation and reduce inventory. The Konsole also incorporates a thermal stop to further limit heat transmittance between the building structure and the cladding system.
A fully supported system on every level
With CROSSFIX, architects and specifiers also benefit from a simplified design process because EJOT provides one source of technical information, calculations and design guidance. And structural engineers can easily access tested performance data and clearly defined load paths, while contractors can gain efficiencies through simplified procurement and coordination.
Early-stage technical support is another valuable dimension to working with EJOT UK, whether using the complete CROSSFIX system or our numerous individual components as part of another system. Our team can help identify suitable bracket configurations, movement solutions and fixing arrangements well before construction begins.
For more information, visit www.ejot.co.uk/CROSSFIX