Due to increasingly stricter building safety norms, investors today expect highly reliable solutions ensuring life and property protection. Manufacturers of construction materials are required to conduct more stringent product tests and to upgrade their parameters. Only a few sandwich panel producers can guarantee the highest level of safety confirmed by the American organization FM Approvals. We are proud to inform you that Ruukki’s sandwich panels with X-PIR and mineral wool core, manufactured in Oborniki Wlkp., Poland, were granted FM Approvals global certification.  
Our panels were certified in a multi-step process. After the initial audit at Ruukki’s plant, the next stage included complex fire resistance and strength tests of sandwich panels in the US. Large-scale fire safety tests are carried out in order to evaluate combustibility of an envelope’s elements in real fire conditions, as opposed to tests performed in accordance with CE norms, which include only specimens with small laboratory dimensions. Tests in FM Approvals laboratories consist of the simulation of real hazards such as fire and hurricane to which a building made using sandwich panels may be exposed. The aim of tests performed is to verify the factual ability of sandwich panel partitions to withstand these harsh scenarios. A positive performance in all tests is confirmed by an FM certificate for a given construction product. 

The results of the fire and strength tests were very good for Ruukki and highly competitive in relation to other manufacturers of sandwich panels. A certificate received based on 4880 and 4881 norms allows the use of panels both as internal partitions (walls and ceilings) and external partitions, in accordance with FM Approvals requirements. 

Ruukki’s panels were awarded the widest possible scope of application, including no limitations as to the admissible height of a building. Additionally, our sandwich panels designed for external walls, unlike competitive solutions, can provide longer spans and withstand the accompanying  high loads coming from wind pressure and suction. 

An FM Approvals certificate for construction products is necessary for an investor or property owner to obtain insurance based on FM norms. FM Approvals certificates for products and services are awarded by the world’s biggest American insurance company FM Global. Their application contributes significantly to minimizing loss risks such as buildings’ destruction and disruption of business activities. The validity of an FM certificate is assessed in regular audits at production sites, confirming the maintenance of quality standards.  

We will soon publish the FM certificate and relevant information on our websites and in marketing materials, proper labels will also be added to the packages of panels covered by the certificate. 

Contact Ruukki’s sales representatives for more information.
Read more about Ruukki's sandwich panels.