Fibre Reinforced Facade Encyclopedia: Testing and standards
Chapter 14 of the International Building Code sets the requirements for exterior walls: the performance the wall must deliver, the water-resistive barrier behind it, and the rules for combustible materials on the outside face, with dedicated sections for metal composite materials, exterior insulation and finish systems and high pressure decorative laminates. Chapter 26 governs plastics, including foam plastic insulation and fibre reinforced polymer. Together the two chapters decide what may be hung on an American building, and the hinge between them is the full-scale assembly test NFPA 285.
The US code permits combustible components in the exterior walls of noncombustible construction, provided the assembly has been tested. Australia’s Deemed-to-Satisfy provisions do not; there, combustible cladding leaves the prescriptive route entirely and becomes a building specific Performance Solution.
At a glance
| Property | Typical value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Chapter 14 | Exterior walls: performance, materials, combustible cladding | Sections 1402 to 1408 in recent editions |
| Section 1402 | Definitions, including exterior wall covering and exterior wall envelope | |
| Section 1403 | Performance requirements, including vertical and lateral flame propagation | The NFPA 285 trigger for buildings over 12.2 m (40 ft) |
| Section 1404 | Materials, including the water-resistive barrier | |
| Section 1405 | Combustible materials on the exterior side of exterior walls | Height and area limits |
| Section 1406 | Metal composite materials (MCM) | ASTM E84 Class A plus NFPA 285 above stated heights |
| Section 1407 | Exterior insulation and finish systems (EIFS) | |
| Section 1408 | High pressure decorative exterior grade compact laminates (HPL) | |
| Chapter 26 | Plastics: foam plastic insulation at 2603, fibre reinforced polymer at 2613 (2021 IBC) | Section 2612 in the 2018 IBC |
| Noncombustibility definition | Section 703.5, referring to ASTM E136 or ASTM E2652 | The gate into Types I and II construction |
How the two chapters fit together
The IBC first asks what type of construction the building is. Types I and II are noncombustible construction, Types III and V permit combustible framing in defined places, and Type IV is mass timber. Section 703.5 defines noncombustible by reference to ASTM E136 or ASTM E2652, with a narrow allowance for a noncombustible base carrying a facing not more than 3.2 millimetres thick with a flame spread index of 50 or less.
Chapter 14 then governs the exterior wall itself. Section 1403 sets the performance the wall envelope must deliver against weather and against fire propagation. Section 1405 limits combustible materials on the outside face by height and area. Sections 1406 to 1408 write specific rules for the three combustible cladding families the code names individually: metal composite materials, EIFS and high pressure laminates.
Chapter 26 covers plastics as a material class. Section 2603 governs foam plastic insulation, which is present in a great many American walls and is the commonest reason an otherwise noncombustible wall needs an assembly test. The fibre reinforced polymer provisions sit at Section 2613 in the 2021 edition and at Section 2612 in the 2018 edition, and set conditions on thickness, area, flame spread and fire blocking as well as the assembly test.
What triggers NFPA 285
NFPA 285 is the two storey exterior wall fire test. The IBC requires it where a wall assembly on a building of Type I, II, III or IV construction contains combustible components and the building exceeds the stated height, generally 12.2 metres (40 feet) above grade plane, though the exact trigger and its exceptions differ between editions and between material sections.
- Foam plastic insulation within the wall assembly, under Section 2603
- Metal composite material cladding, under Section 1406
- Fibre reinforced polymer cladding, under Section 2613 in the 2021 IBC or 2612 in the 2018 IBC
- High pressure decorative laminates, under Section 1408
- Many water-resistive barriers and air barriers that are themselves combustible
- EIFS, under Section 1407
How this differs from the Australian approach
The difference is structural, not just numerical. In the United States, combustible components in the exterior wall of a noncombustible building are contemplated by the prescriptive code itself: the code names the material families, sets conditions, and accepts an assembly test as the demonstration. A designer who meets those conditions has complied prescriptively. There is no requirement to engage a fire engineer to write a building specific argument, and an engineering judgement from a fire protection engineer can extend a test to a similar wall.
In Australia, NCC 2022 Volume One clause C2D10 (check the edition adopted in your jurisdiction) requires the external walls of Type A and Type B construction, and anything attached to them, to be non-combustible under AS 1530.1. There is no prescriptive allowance for a tested combustible assembly. A design using combustible cladding leaves the Deemed-to-Satisfy route altogether and becomes a Performance Solution, normally under Verification Method C1V3 with a full-scale AS 5113 classification, prepared by a fire engineer and accepted or refused by the certifier for that one building.
The practical consequences follow from that. An American product with an NFPA 285 assembly test and a library of engineering judgements can be specified across many projects on the same evidence. An Australian project using the same product needs an AS 5113 test of its own wall system and a fire engineering report for the building. Neither test result is accepted in the other jurisdiction: NFPA 285 and AS 5113 use different rigs, fire sources, durations and criteria.
Where the ShapeShift systems sit in the US code
ShapeShell-RC is a glass fibre reinforced concrete system, Not Deemed Combustible under AS/NZS 1530.1, tested by Ignis Labs. Glass fibre reinforced concrete is the material class that can satisfy the Section 703.5 noncombustibility definition, but a US project needs the ASTM E136 test itself rather than the Australian equivalent.
ShapeShell-RT is a fibre reinforced polymer system. FRP is combustible; it cannot pass ASTM E136, AS 1530.1 or EN ISO 1182, and no resin system changes that. Under the IBC it is a Chapter 26 material and is reached by the fibre reinforced polymer provisions, which call for ASTM E84 flame spread performance and, above the stated height on Types I to IV, an NFPA 285 test of the assembly. ShapeShell-RT holds an AS 5637 Group 1 classification from AWTA Product Testing, an EN 13501-1 class of B-s2,d0 from Intertek Testing Services, and a full-scale BS 8414 and AS 5113 pass at BRE Global.
Standards and references
- International Building Code Chapter 14 (exterior walls), Sections 1402 to 1408
- International Building Code Chapter 26 (plastics), Sections 2603 and 2613 (2021) or 2612 (2018)
- International Building Code Section 703.5 (noncombustibility tests) and Chapter 6 (types of construction)
- NFPA 285 Standard Fire Test Method for Evaluation of Fire Propagation Characteristics of Exterior Wall Assemblies Containing Combustible Components
- ASTM E136 and ASTM E2652 (noncombustibility); ASTM E84 (surface burning characteristics)
- NCC 2022 Volume One C2D10, C1V3 and AS 5113, for comparison with the Australian approach
Related terms
Questions specifiers ask
What does IBC Chapter 14 cover?
Exterior walls: the performance of the wall envelope, water-resistive barriers, and combustible materials on the exterior side, with dedicated sections for metal composite materials, EIFS and high pressure decorative laminates.
When does the IBC require NFPA 285?
Generally where a wall assembly on a building of Type I to IV construction contains combustible components and the building is more than 12.2 metres (40 feet) above grade plane. The precise trigger sits in the material sections and differs between code editions.
Does noncombustible cladding avoid NFPA 285?
Not necessarily. The trigger belongs to the assembly. A noncombustible panel over foam plastic insulation or a combustible water-resistive barrier still requires the assembly to be tested.
How is the US approach different from the Australian NCC?
The IBC allows combustible components in exterior walls of noncombustible construction prescriptively, on condition the assembly passes NFPA 285. The NCC’s Deemed-to-Satisfy provisions require non-combustible external walls on Type A and Type B construction, so combustible cladding must go through a building specific Performance Solution instead.
Where does FRP cladding sit in the IBC?
In Chapter 26, at Section 2613 in the 2021 edition and Section 2612 in the 2018 edition, with conditions on flame spread under ASTM E84, thickness, area and fire blocking, and an NFPA 285 assembly test above the stated height.
Taking a moulded facade into the US market? Ask ShapeShift which tests each system holds and which the jurisdiction will require. Contact the technical team
Reviewed by Richard Halvorsen, General Manager, ShapeShift Technologies. Last updated September 2026.