SUSPENDED CEILINGS

Assembly Variations

System consisting of concealed and galvanised main profiles (e.g. Z-

profiles), suspended with quick suspension hangers fixed to soffit with
fixings approved by the responsible building authorities. The
connection to the wall consisting of white wall angle profiles e.g. 24 x
24 mm, is to be mitered at the corners and fixed to the wall with
suitable fixings. The opening of gaps between the tiles is to be
prevented by spring clips.
System consisting of concealed and galvanised main profiles,
suspended with quick suspension hangers fixed to soffit with fixings
approved by the responsible building authorities. The connection to the
wall consisting of white wall angle profiles e.g. 24 x 24 mm, is to be
mitered at the corners and fixed to the wall with suitable fixings. The
opening of gaps between the tiles is to be prevented by spring clips.

System consisting of concealed and galvanised main profiles,

suspended with Nonius hangers fixed to soffit with fixings approved by
the responsible building authorities. The connection to the wall
consisting of white wall angle profiles, is to be mitered at the corners
and fixed to the wall with suitable fixings. The opening of gaps
between the tiles is to be prevented by spring clips. The metal tiles are
clipped into the main runners. The edges of the tiles are bevelled.
PERFORMANCE

Fire Performance

The importance of fire safety in all buildings can never be understated.

Fire destroys buildings, cripples business and endangers life.

It is essential that buildings are protected against the onset and

spread of fire. Such protection and the use of fire safe materials makes
them safer places to visit, work and recuperate in.

The following information provides an insight into some of the most

important factors regarding fire and suspended ceilings. The relevant
standards, and a comparison of how pure 100% rock wool based
materials and other common materials behave in fire are also covered.

Building Regulations

The current Building Regulations only call for ceilings and wall linings
to be Class 0 for most applications.

A ceiling having just class 0 is not enough

Current Building Regulations in general only cover the escape of

occupants, surface spread of flame (as part of the Class 0
requirement) and accessibility for fire tenders. Unfortunately, they are
not concerned with accurately defining maximum allowable levels of
smoke and toxic emissions, and do not focus on the total fire
protection of buildings which would help reduce the downtime and loss
of production and revenue which often occur as a result of fire.

Building insurers and many clients are now not surprisingly

encouraging the use of truly fire safe materials

By using truly fire safe ceiling materials, it is possible to enhance the

fire safety of your building and provide much more than just the
minimum Class 0 legal requirement.

Smoke and toxic emissions

Smoke and toxic emissions are involved in more than 50% of all fire
fatalities, and the primary cause of death in over a third. To ensure
products are safe, they should have a low rate of both smoke and toxic
emissions.

Fire resistance and structural fire protection

In order to further enhance building fire safety, the stability and
integrity of ceilings when subjected to fire is also an important factor.
This can have a great influence on the effectiveness of escape routes,
and the ease with which fire fighters can enter and save buildings on
fire.

Structural fire protecting/resisting ceiling systems that have been

tested in accordance with BS 476 Parts 21, 22 and 23 can be used to
satisfy the requirements of parts of the Building Regulations.

Whilst not every application requires the use of fire protecting ceilings,
the above tests, together with a knowledge of the high temperature
stability and melting point of ceiling materials provide useful
performance indicators.
Humidity Resistance

As building construction times become shorter and heating regimes

are further stretched, it is of major importance that products used in
the construction process and in the finished building are completely
humidity/ moisture resistant.

These days products can be subjected to relatively large temperature

and humidity changes during construction and if the building is left
unheated or they are in contact with outdoor air. Typically, on a dry
day with a temperature of 15ºC and a relative humidity (RH) of 50%,
this can change to a temperature of 6ºC and a relative humidity of
92% at night.

In application areas which can be subject to constantly high humidity

levels typically above 95% RH and 25ºC e.g. wet rooms, kitchens,
swimming pools, industrial applications etc; the need for ceilings which
have high humidity/moisture resistance is further reinforced.

In addition, because bacteria and fungi need organic material,

moisture and heat to grow; ceiling products that are inorganic, non
hygroscopic (do not absorb moisture from the air) and remain stable
over a wide temperature and relative humidity (RH) range are the
most appropriate option for all applications.

For the best long term performance and ease of use during
construction, ceiling products that are inorganic, non hygroscopic and
humidity/moisture resistant up to 100% RH at 40ºC provide the safest
option.

Emissions

There are many test standards and approvals covering building

materials with regard to particle and gas emissions. The most common
test standards, and the ones which form the basis for many other
approvals are the Scandinavian Standards Nordtest Standard NT Build
347 for fibre emission and the DS/INF 90 Standard which covers
formaldehyde emissions. These are complemented by the American
Standard ASTM E981 for volatile organic components.

Particle Emission
Generally for most approvals, any particle emissions from products is
determined by particle size and the weight per unit area of particles
released when a sample of a product is mechanically agitated.
Typically, this is quantified by classifications of Low, Medium and High.

To ensure the best performance, products having a "Low" classification

are the most appropriate for all building applications.

Gas emission

Generally gas emission is determined by using specialised sensors to

measure gases emitted from products. This is normally quantified by
the type and concentration of gas emitted relative to time. Typically,
the time is quoted in days and is a measure of how quickly emissions
from products fall below acceptable levels after installation.

To ensure the best performance, products having a classification of

"less than 10 days" are the most appropriate for all building
applications.

The positive results from tests in accordance with the above standards
has allowed the following approvals to be granted for Rockfon
products:

Indoor Climate Label

The Indoor Climate Label standard has two different categories:

Particle emission and Gas emission. The particle emission test used is
based on the NT Build 347 fibre emission test.

Gas emission

The declared indoor relevant time value has been determined as: 10
days. This means that the emission time is less than 10 days from the
time products are installed.

Particle emission

The emission of particles including fibres has been determined as low.

Hygiene

In addition to low particle and gas emissions, to ensure a high level of

hygiene in all application areas, it is important that ceiling products
remain dimensionally stable in a wide range of environments and that
they can be easily cleaned whilst also being rot free and resistant to
the growth of fungi and bacteria.

In order to meet the above criteria, and provide good longevity,

because bacteria and fungi need organic material, moisture and heat
to grow, ceiling products that are inorganic, non hygroscopic (do not
absorb moisture from the air) and are able to remain stable over a
wide temperature and relative humidity (RH) range are the most
appropriate option. In addition, ceiling products that can be easily
cleaned as well as resisting bacterial and fungal growth in their own
right further enhance their suitability and longevity.

Light Reflection

Ceilings with a high light reflection can help in the creation of optimum
light conditions, and can contribute to reduced energy costs.

For optimum solutions, it is recommended to have a ceiling that has a

light coloured matt surface with a light reflection >=80%.

A ceiling with a high light reflection will allow for maximum daylight
distribution in a room. It will also reduce the risk of "dark holes" by
maximising inter-reflected light whilst lowering the risk of poor
contrast ranges on the working plane.

A ceiling that has a combination of both high light reflection and a high
light reflection diffusion coefficient ensures that reflected light is
spread uniformly and means that energy savings can be achieved due
to the reduced number of luminaires required, regardless of which
lighting method is used (direct, indirect, mixed).

The following data illustrates the potential for energy and luminaire
savings:
If a ceiling is illuminated with indirect lighting (100% uplighting), the
light reflection of the ceiling is generally regarded as being directly
proportional to energy consumption. Therefore, increasing the light
reflection of the ceiling can give directly proportional reductions in the
amount of energy and luminaires required. Eg. by increasing the
ceiling light reflection from 70 - 87% would mean a 17% reduction in
energy or amount of luminaires required to create the same lighting
effect.

Typically in a room, 10 m x 6 m x 3 m illuminated with direct lighting

(100% down-lighting), the interreflecting part of the light on the
working plane will be approximately 20%. The importance of the
reflection from the ceiling can be shown by changing the ceiling
reflection from 50% to 80%. This would reduce the amount of energy
and therefore the amount of luminaires required to create the same
lighting conditions by 5%.

Generally, as many applications have a combination of natural light,

direct and indirect light, the ceiling reflection efficiency plays an
important part in the overall lighting conditions and energy
consumption. See Fig. 1

Design solutions

Natural light is certainly the most economical method of lighting,

however, for many fundamental reasons it has to be supplemented
with artificial light in most applications.

In the work place, conditions are optimised when artificial lighting is

situated at the side of a work area. Luminaires should also simulate
daylight, both in the direction of light and luminaire position. The
location of work areas relative to windows is also important.To ensure
maximum daylight usage, and therefore maximum energy saving with
artifical lights, all interior surfaces should have the relevant light
reflectance coefficients depending on their location in a room.

E.g.

Floor 10 - 30%
Walls 50 - 70%
Ceiling 80 - 90%.
Equally important is that all main surfaces should reflect light in a
diffused way. This creates a better spread of light and prevents
temporary blinding and reduces glare.

Sound Absorption

The sound absorption property of a material expresses the ratio of

incident sound and absorbed sound. The efficiency of sound absorption
is expressed by the term sound absorption coefficient  at a specific
frequency. It should be noted that the sound absorption of a material
can vary depending on how it is installed and the depth of any air
space behind it.

 is a ratio between 0 & 1.

 = Absorbed sound energy / Incident sound energy

All sound absorbed

 = 1 ( 100% efficiency )

No sound absorbed
 = 0( 0% efficiency ).

Acoustics

The term "room acoustics" deals with the behaviour of sound in a

room or a specifically defined area. The most important criteria are
that sounds such as music or speech in a lecture theatre, can be heard
and perceived as precisely and clearly as possible, and interrupting
background sound in an open plan office, is controlled to ensure as
much privacy as possible.

The behaviour of sound within rooms is linked to the room size and
shape, together with the performance of the internal surfaces and the
construction type. It is important to use the most suitable materials
and obtain the right "acoustic balance" between the different surfaces.
The use of the correct mixture of acoustically "hard" and "soft"
materials will create the "room acoustics" appropriate for the purpose
of the room.

The most common terms used in connection with "room acoustics"

include, sound absorption, reverberation time, speech intelligibility and
sound insulation between rooms.
The term "room acoustics" deals with the behaviour of sound in a
room or a specifically defined area. The most important criteria are
that sounds such as music or speech in a lecture theatre, can be heard
and perceived as precisely and clearly as possible, and interrupting
background sound in an open plan office, is controlled to ensure as
much privacy as possible.

The behaviour of sound within rooms is linked to the room size and
shape, together with the performance of the internal surfaces and the
construction type. It is important to use the most suitable materials
and obtain the right "acoustic balance" between the different surfaces.
The use of the correct mixture of acoustically "hard" and "soft"
materials will create the "room acoustics" appropriate for the purpose
of the room.

Reverberation

The acoustics of a room can be described by its reverberation time.

Reverberation time is defined as the time it takes for the sound
pressure level to drop by 60 dB. See fig. 1.

A short reverberation time gives the best possibilities for a clear and
distinct sound picture, good speech intelligibility and minimising
annoying background noise. Long reverberation times that are typical
in rooms with too many "hard" surfaces leads to poor speech
intelligibility and often echos which contribute to create poor room
acoustics.

Typical reverberation times range from 0.3 seconds e.g. in cinemas

with modern surround sound systems to approximately 7 seconds in
large cathedrals. Just like sound absorption, reverberation time is
frequency dependent. Therefore, it is important to state the required
reverberation time at the relevant frequencies.

Source: Rockfon Ceiling Systems, UK