Fire-rated systems for shafts in high-rise buildings
Knauf Shaftwall™ systems provide a high-performance solution for creating essential vertical shafts in high-rise buildings. These lightweight, non-loadbearing wall systems are designed to store critical electrical, mechanical, and hydraulic services that connect multiple floors. They are specifically engineered to prevent the spread of fire between floors, protecting both the building’s infrastructure and its occupants during emergencies. Additionally, Shaftwall™ systems offer excellent acoustic separation, ensuring that noise from mechanical systems and elevators doesn’t disrupt the comfort of habitable spaces.
Constructed using 25 mm Shaftliner™ Mouldstop panels and Firestop® plasterboard linings, the Shaftwall™ system delivers robust fire resistance while remaining cost-effective and easy to install. The system’s innovative design allows for construction from one side only, simplifying the building process and reducing the need for access from both sides of the shaft. This efficient installation method, combined with the system’s lightweight materials, makes Shaftwall™ an ideal choice for elevator shafts, stairwells, and wider service riser walls in high-rise construction projects.
Benefits
- No wet trades required
- Cost-effective, lightweight, and space-efficient
- Fast and easy to construct from one side, removing the need for access within the shaft
- Permits easy inclusion of services and penetrations such as cables, dampers, and pipes
- Satisfies the NCC provisions for riser and shaft walls
Applications
- High-rise construction
Features
- Knauf Shaftwall™ systems have been fire tested at CSIRO’s laboratory at North Ryde in Sydney and BRANZ’s facilities in Wellington, New Zealand. Refer to the manual below for more details on the Fire Resistance Level (FRL).
- The Shaftwall™ systems’ FRL satisfy the requirements of NCC Building Code of Australia (BCA) Volume 2.
- Knauf Firestop®, Multistop™ ONE, Multistop ONE HI, and Shaftliner™ Mouldstop plasterboard linings have been tested to AS/NZS 3837 – in accordance with the selection process of AS 5637.1 to provide a Group Number Classification in accordance with NCC Specification C1.10.
- Knauf specifies the use of steel components manufactured by Rondo Building Services Pty Ltd in all Shaftwall™ systems.
- Knauf Shaftwall™ systems comply with the structural strength and serviceability requirements outlined in the NCC Specification C1.8 ‘Structural Tests for Lightweight Construction’, with testing carried out at the Knauf NATA-accredited laboratory for this purpose.
- Knauf Shaftwall™ systems have been tested to resist a uniformly distributed load of 0.25 kPa or 0.35 kPa (or its equivalent) and comply with the requirements of the Specification. Refer to Test Report 900516.
- Lightweight walls are also to be tested for deflection and damage under dynamic pressure when impacted by a 27.2 kg sandbag from a drop height of 150 mm. Knauf Shaftwall™ systems have been tested under impact to comply with NCC requirements. Refer to Test Report 900702.
- Knauf FireStop®, MultiStop™ ONE, MultiStop™ ONE HI, and Shaftliner™ Mould Stop panels are tested for exceptional surface hardness to meet top safety and performance standards. For details, see Technisearch Limited Test Report 425A.
- Knauf Shaftwall™ with CH-stud framing meets Specification C1.8, enduring over one million cycles of load to simulate high-speed lift movements in high-rises. Our panels flex under pressure without damage, ensuring long-lasting performance. For more details, see Test Report 890914.
- Knauf Shaftwall™ systems have been the subject of laboratory testing at facilities such as the CSIRO Acoustic Laboratory at Highett, Victoria. From these tests, acoustical opinions for Shaftwall™ systems have been determined by Renzo Tonin and Associates Pty Ltd in opinion number RT&A TE405-20S10.
- Moisture resistant plasterboard linings must be used in areas classified as Wet Areas in accordance with the NCC. 13 mm WetStop and 16 mm Knauf MultiStop™ ONE linings are treated in the manufacturing process to resist the effects of moisture and humidity, meeting the water-resistant grade gypsum plasterboard requirements of AS/NZS 2588 and making them suitable for use in wet area applications.
- All Shaftliner panels are now manufactured as Shaftliner™ Mouldstop. Shaftliner™ Mouldstop contains the added advantage of mould resistance and showed zero signs of mould growth when tested in accordance with ASTM D3273 and ASTM G21.
- Knauf MultiStop™ ONE linings are multi-attribute boards that resist a range of considerations, including impact, moisture, and mould. Furthermore, the MultiStop™ ONE HI product utilises a reinforcing fibreglass mesh at the rear of the board to provide an even greater degree of impact resistance. Exova Warrington Fire Assessment Report EWFA 27211 assesses the equivalence of the fire resistance performance of Firestop® and MultiStop™ formulations. As such, MultiStop™ ONE and MultiStop™ ONE HI products of equivalent thickness can be used in lieu of Firestop® without adversely affecting the FRL of a system.
- Knauf Shaftwall™ systems have been the subject of air infiltration testing by Ian Bennie & Associates in accordance with AS/NZS 4284:2008.
