According to Sir Martin Moore-Blick, chair of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, Arconic, Celotex and Kingspan displayed “systematic dishonesty” and “deliberate manipulation” to get their products used in the 2015 refurbishment of Grenfell Tower.
Here’s what they had to say in return.
Arconic
“Arconic’s subsidiary, Arconic Architectural Products SAS (AAP), supplied sheets of aluminium composite material that were used to manufacture the rainscreen for the Grenfell Tower refurbishment.
“The fire was a terrible tragedy and as Arconic remembers the 72 people who died, our thoughts remain with the families, friends and all of those affected.
“AAP was a core participant in the inquiry and has acknowledged its role as one of the material suppliers involved in the refurbishment of Grenfell Tower.
“The company respects the Inquiry process. AAP cooperated fully with the work of the Inquiry and will continue to engage with further legal processes. Together with other parties, AAP has made financial contributions to settlements for those affected, as well as to the restorative justice fund.
“Throughout the inquiry, AAP has maintained a number of points:
- AAP sold sheets of aluminium composite material as specified in the design process. This product was safe to use as a building material, and legal to sell in the UK as well as the more than thirty other countries in which AAP customers purchased the product. We reject any claim that AAP sold an unsafe product.
- AAP regularly conducted tests of its materials using third-party testing bodies. Reports on these results were all publicly available, and AAP made these reports available to its customers.
- AAP did not conceal information from or mislead any certification body, customer, or the public.”
Celotex
“The publication of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Report marks the conclusion of the Inquiry’s work and we are considering its contents with care. We acknowledge the scale and significance of the exercise undertaken by the Inquiry as it has considered the many, complex and inter-related issues which arise in relation to the building, its refurbishment and the fire. We recognise and endorse the need to ensure that public confidence in the safety of high-rise residential buildings in the UK, and in the construction industry as a whole, is fully restored. The work of the Inquiry is fundamental to achieving that objective.
“Through its participation in the Inquiry process and its own internal investigations, Celotex Limited has sought to understand and learn from the issues raised by the fire. We are committed to playing our part in ensuring that no such tragedy occurs again.
“Our business’ response started immediately after the fire in June 2017. We conducted our own review to interrogate the circumstances in which the RS5000 product had been tested, launched and marketed. This review was a significant and thorough undertaking, and the results of that work were disclosed promptly and proactively to all relevant stakeholders including the Grenfell Tower Inquiry. Information was uncovered through the review that was previously unknown to the management of the company at the time of the Grenfell Tower fire. The company took appropriate action.
“Independent testing commissioned following the review demonstrated that the cladding system described in Celotex RS5000 marketing literature met the relevant safety criteria. “We also understand that government-testing in August 2017 showed that a cladding system incorporating RS5000 and a non-combustible aluminium cladding panel met the relevant standards. These systems were substantially different from that used at Grenfell Tower, which incorporated combustible cladding panels. Celotex Limited does not design and install cladding systems and did not do so at Grenfell Tower. The design and construction of the facade at Grenfell Tower and the selection of the various components, were decisions made by construction industry professionals.
“Since the fire, we reviewed and improved process controls, quality management and the approach to marketing within the Celotex business to address the issues discovered and ensure that the culture, systems and processes relating to product compliance and product safety meet industry best practice.
“Celotex Limited continues to cooperate fully with all official investigations into the Grenfell Tower fire.
“We reiterate our sympathies to everyone affected by the fire.”
Kingspan
“Today is another extremely difficult day for the relatives and survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire and we extend our deepest sympathies to those impacted by the tragedy.
We welcome the publication of today’s report which is crucial to a public understanding of what went wrong and why. It explains clearly and unambiguously that the type of insulation (whether combustible or non-combustible) was immaterial, and that the principal reason for the fire spread was the PE ACM cladding, which was not made by Kingspan.
“Kingspan has long acknowledged the wholly unacceptable historical failings that occurred in part of our UK insulation business. These were in no way reflective of how we conduct ourselves as a Group, then or now. While deeply regrettable, they were not found to be causative of the tragedy.
“Kingspan has already emphatically addressed these issues, including the implementation of extensive and externally-verified measures to ensure our conduct and compliance standards are world leading.
“We remain committed to playing a leading role in providing safe and sustainable building solutions, including continuing to work with government and industry partners.”
