FOAMGLAS Chosen for Safety and Sustainability at Ireland’s Premier International Airport

Terminal 2 is seen as the centrepiece of the redevelopment of Dublin airport. It will comprise 9,000m² of retail and catering outlets, 58 check-in desks plus baggage handling and energy-centre facilities.
Passenger traffic had doubled during a 10 year period making Dublin the 8th largest airport in Europe for international traffic. A further projected doubling in passenger traffic necessitated substantial development of the existing airport facilities.

Fire safety and sustainability were important considerations which led to Pittsburgh Corning’s FOAMGLAS® insulation being selected as the insulation material for internal and external pipework in the terminal, piers and energy centre.

Work on terminal 2 started in 2007 with approximately 13km of FOAMGLAS® piping insulation being applied in 2008 & 2009. Much of the pipework was pre-insulated offsite and brought in as modules which could be lifted into place easily and quickly. The strength of FOAMGLAS® meant that this was possible without risk of compromising the insulation system.
Airport Fire Safety

Airports are host to many thousands of passengers as they wait for flights and pass their time in shops and restaurants within the confines of a secure terminal building.

The catastrophic fire at Dusseldorf airport in 1996 was caused by the use of plastic-foam insulation in ceiling voids which had been ignited by sparks from welding equipment. The fire and smoke generated killed 17 people and caused an estimated £200m of damage.

When Dusseldorf airport was rebuilt, Pittsburgh Corning’s FOAMGLAS® cellular glass was specified for the roof, terraces, basements, ventilation and air conditioning systems – all places considered to be at greatest risk from fire.

London Heathrow’s Terminal 5 control tower is an imposing 65m high, 862 tonne structure, lined with FOAMGLAS®. The Industrial Fire Journal reported that FOAMGLAS® “was picked because of its complete non-combustibility. FOAMGLAS is the only truly 100% closed-cell, non-combustible (Euroclass A1) insulation material; its thermal conductivity is uniquely constant over time”.

FOAMGLAS is at the heart of safe insulation systems for the protection of the passengers, staff and operational integrity of airports world-wide.

Dublin Airport: Safety for the Future

The exceptional properties of fire safety and impermeability made FOAMGLAS® the logical choice for Dublin airport.

Pipework from small-bore up to 14” diameter was insulated with up to 70mm of FOAMGLAS® with a factory-applied foil finish being used internal to the buildings. Metal cladding was applied on insulated pipework outside of buildings such as the long runs between the energy centre and terminal building. In addition to insulating the hot/cold service pipework, the internal roof drain pipes were also FOAMGLAS® insulated.

Dublin airport has truly achieved the highest levels of fire safety and environmental credibility with Pittsburgh Corning’s FOAMGLAS® cellular glass, a product made with 2/3 post-consumer glass waste which has a uniquely-constant thermal conductivity over decades.

For more information contact:

PITTSBURGH CORNING (UK) LTD, Reading, Berks.
Tel:  0871 2000 326 fax: 0870 127 8100

E-mail: industry@foamglas.co.uk