Trade association, Insulation Australasia has launched a national and trans-Tasman insulation certification scheme to deal with non-compliant products and services constantly arriving and being used in Australia.

The aim of the scheme is to have all insulation products third party certified and complaint to the standards of the Building Code of Australia.

Scott Gibson, the chair of Insulation Australasia stated that the issue of non-compliant building products and services has been compromising the Australian building industry for twenty years. He also stated that the industry are having to deal with non-compliant products in the aftermath of the 2009-2010 Home Insulation Program.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has recently approved a compensation scheme for the families of four men who died when installing batts under the Home Insulation Program. Insulation companies who suffered due to the closure of the Program will also receive compensation. Finance Minister, Mathias Cormann is currently developing these compensation options.

The issues of non-compliance were first raised at the Housing Industry Association’s industry summit in Sydney in July. Attendees pointed out that inconsistent compliance regulations promote an uneven playing field between ethical manufacturers that abide by the standards and those who take are non-compliant and take advantage of the system.

Insulation Australasia recently conducted a random survey of insulated flexible duct products to discover if they met their claimed thermal efficiency ratings of R1.0 which is the legislated minimum requirement. All nine products failed to meet this requirement.

More information on the national insulation certification scheme can be found here.

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