Panellised construction, an element of prefabrication, has become a method by which we can deliver more buildings in New Zealand while not being affected by weather, adverse conditions or the lack of daylight hours. Building in a controlled environment such as a factory enables faster delivery of a semi-finished product to site come rain, hail or shine – enabling quicker installation and faster overall project completion.

Winstone Wallboards has been working closely with fabricators, drawing on the extensive experience of our engineering team, to provide technical support and specific design input; aligning or modifying our systems to allow rapid manufacture and efficient installation.

As build typologies are different for each fabricator, systems can be tested to the way the elements will be manufactured in order to show compliance to the building code. Everything is tested, verified and technically precise.

Thus far, we have worked with manufacturers to verify systems for bracing, fire and acoustics in the mass-production process that they are using, tailoring the solution to what the customer wants to achieve.

Specifically developed solutions – stapling systems

Staple fixing systems are often a prevalent part of the required scope to facilitate efficient manufacturing on an assembly line; a recent collaboration between Winstone Wallboards engineers, and the manufacturers development team has resulted in:

• Assessment of alternative panel hold down options for bracing.
• Development of a staple installation option for GIB Weatherline® Rigid Air Barrier and other GIB® Plasterboard Bracing and Fire Systems.
• Testing of the stapled installation option in the ALTUS wind pressure booth.
• Testing of the stapled installation on the P21 rig for bracing resistance.
• Development of specification data sheets to support consent applications.

If you would like to explore how our technical engineers can assist with tailoring and testing solutions to meet your needs, please call the GIB® Technical Helpline 0800 100 442; engaging our engineering and technical resources. It’s all part of the service.