It’s not necessarily about timeframe, it’s about safety and quality when it comes to the removal and replacement of flammable cladding, according to SHAPE Australia’s Project Director, Sam Ciccia.

A number of companies have been tasked by the Federal Government with the removal of flammable cladding from thousands of buildings across the country, in the wake of London’s Grenfell Tower incident, as well as the Neo200 apartment building going up in flames in Melbourne in 2019. Each tower varies in purpose, size and difficulty, with a number of planning and removal stages undertaken to ensure that risk is completely mitigated.

A report commissioned by Construction Union Australia in 2021 revealed that more than 3,400 buildings in Australia are clad with high risk materials, highlighting the need for governments and cladding entities to move swiftly to remedy these issues. Ciccia oversees a number of teams nationwide that have been involved in gradually bringing down 3,400 at-risk buildings to zero.

“There's been a heavy focus for the past 3-4 years into combustible cladding,” he says.

“At SHAPE, we've set up some quality tools, programming and safety components or along the way as well. So working very closely with everyone in the game.”

Sam Ciccia SHAPE

Ciccia indicates that in order for the removal to take place, everything must be in order, from planning and data, to safety measures onsite, through to the act of replacing the cladding with newer, safer materials.

“It is a gradual process. Obviously you need to have the correct information and assess from there. We have expertise in each state and we’ve been involved with a number of clients nationwide.

“In terms of timeline it does vary, but it takes approximately 6-8 weeks in planning in preparation to remove flammable cladding from at-risk buildings. We've also got our safety procedures that we put in place before we jump on any job site.

“You’re typically onsite at the ten week mark, and then the cladding removal process occurs after that, which varies enormously depending on the size of the building.”

Ciccia says the whole process has been straightforward, with SHAPE removing and replacing flammable cladding from over 30 buildings nationwide, with more than half of those in New South Wales. The Project Director says it's been an easy process when engaging with clients, stakeholders and government.

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“It's been a really good journey. We have really enjoyed it and the feedback from our clients has been excellent.”

With the removal of flammable cladding delayed by covid and various shortages of materials in the construction industry, Ciccia is wary of putting a timeframe on when the remit will reach completion, but says that the safety and quality of the replacement cladding is priority number one.

“Given the amount of variables with this type of work, it’s hard to put a timeframe on completion. The government believes it will take approximately 36 months for all the buildings to have flammable cladding removed.

“But again, the focus isn’t on time, it's more about safety and quality. That’s always been our process.”

SHAPE Australia is one of many companies involved in the removal of flammable cladding from buildings around the country. For more information, visit shape.com.au.

Image: Supplied.

Jarrod Reedie

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