Circular Quay Overseas Passenger Terminal

FIBEROCK® AQUA TOUGH™ - IDEAL FOR USE IN HARSH ENVIRONMENTS

The original specification was for two different fibre cement materials, but the contractor Interior Works, wanted to use just one product for the two applications. To increase the efficiency on site and to reduce waste – they chose FIBEROCK® Aqua Tough™ ahead of other comparative products. USG Boral FIBEROCK® covers a lot of bases – it’s resistant to water, fire, mould and impact, and has excellent acoustic qualities.

In total, 800m2 of FIBEROCK® Aqua Tough™ was supplied to the Passenger Terminal project with USG Boral staff working closely with Interior Works to ensure supplies were on the ground in a timely manner. It was a very tight site with some trades working two shifts per day and limited access to the site during the day, meaning that the coordination of deliveries was imperative to ensure the installation teams had the product where and when it was required.

“Interior Works really drove the process with us, they gave us the specification and asked whether FIBEROCK® met the requirements of the specification, which it does. They were keen to use one product as a substitute for 6mm and 9mm fibre cement, which were the two products specified. Using one board also substantially streamlined the fitout process.”

“FIBEROCK® Aqua Tough™ was not specified on this project, but we felt we could achieve a better outcome by using FIBEROCK®. We used over 30,000 sqm of FIBEROCK® Aqua Tough™ at the Hornsby Mental Health Hospital, so we knew from this experience that we could have greater control over the outcome and that it paints up easier and gives a better finish than the product that was specified,” said Interior Works Director, Darren Hitchon.

A leading global manufacturer of building materials and solutions, USG Boral has been innovating with synthetic gypsum for over 30 years, with the technology for FIBEROCK® Aqua Tough™ developed 15 years ago.

“It is like paperless plasterboard, except plasterboard relies on the paper for its strength. FIBEROCK® is created by a patented process of growing gypsum under high pressure which interlinks the crystals with paper, so there is no paper needed on the outside. There is also no possibility of delamination, as it is a solid matrix,” explained USG Boral National Architectural & Specifications Manager, Peter Wood.

“All the required testing has been done to have FIBEROCK® Aqua Tough™ approved by GECA (Good Environmental Choice Australia) as a sustainable product. It is recyclable - every board can be re-used by removing it, rebating the edges and using it elsewhere.

“FIBEROCK® Aqua Tough™ also contains very little new material. It is comprised of 10% recycled cellulose (from post-industrial paper and cardboard), and 85% re-encapsulated gypsum.”

“It is a finished wall system, and the higher cost of the board compared to conventional plasterboard is balanced by the time, labour and logistical savings. A contractor can achieve with a single layer of FIBEROCK® Aqua Tough™ what other walls would achieve with a double layer.

“Education of architects and contractors is key in enabling them to see the value in the boards – which also includes longevity, and an ongoing benefit is the reduced maintenance of partitions and walls.“As the company that invented plasterboard, this is the next evolutionary step, which helps the industry and the end-user.”

*USG Boral FIBEROCK® Aqua Tough™ is suitable for use in exterior soffit applications only, not general exterior use. For more information on exterior linings please refer to USGBoral.com. To ensure the information you are using is current, USG Boral recommends you review the latest building information available on the USG Boral website at USGBoral.com.

The opinions expressed by the employees of Watpac and Interior Works above are the opinions of those third parties and should not be taken to reflect the views or opinions of USG Boral. For more information on FIBEROCK® Aqua Tough™ please visit; www.USGBoral.com/fiberock