Demand rises for Gripple’s fire rated Fast Trak™

Gripple, the manufacturer of innovative suspension solutions for installing building services, is experiencing strong demand for its revolutionary fixing solution Fast Trak™, from contractors seeking fire rated systems.

Fast Trak™ is a prefabricated, trapeze bracket, which enables efficient, flexible and safe installation of electrical containment, ductwork, pipework and other mechanical services.

With fire safety in buildings becoming more important following the recent update to Approved Document B of Building Regulations, Gripple has secured independent test data for Fast Trak™, which confirms that the entire system meets the fire performance requirements associated with BS EN 1363-1:2020. 

The 18^th Edition Wiring Regulations includes a ‘premature collapse’ clause relating to suspended building services. Industry body BEAMA produced guidance ‘Prevention of Premature Collapse – Guide to the Design, Installation and Inspection of Cable Management Systems’.  This gives contractors and developers greater clarity of fire certified suspended building systems.

Warringtonfire

Gripple’s Fast Trak™ system has been approved to meet the fire safety requirements of the 18^th Edition Writing Regulations, with the complete system certified by Warringtonfire.

Paul Fish, Managing Director at M&E contractors P A Collacott & Co, says: “We have chosen Fast Trak on several of our projects. The speed of installation and the fire ratings are key factors in the decision to move away from traditional bracketry.

“The clarity on weight capacity and design assistance from Gripple are added bonuses to the product ranges.”

Will Anderson, Head of Construction for Gripple, explains: “Fire safety is extremely important in modern building design and contractors are looking for building services suspension systems that are fire rated, which may not be the case with other systems that don’t have the same assurances and traceability as Fast Trak.

“This provides great peace of mind to contractors and their clients when using Fast Trak™ that they are meeting Building Regulations requirements.”

Fast Trak™ comprises metal tracks, from 200mm to 1,500mm in length, accompanied by mounting brackets, from 170mm to 1,470mm wide and is designed to suit a wide range of installations from high-rise office blocks, hotels, hospitals, open retail spaces, residential buildings, or transportation hubs.

Up to six times faster to install than traditional methods, including threaded rod and channel, the patented Fast Trak™ system offers tool-free adjustment and is an ideal solution for projects where ceiling space is less than 800mm.

Safety on-site is enhanced with Fast Trak™ as there is no need for a ‘hot works’ permit as the pre-fabricated system removes the need to cut threaded rod or channel on-site. 

‘Versatile’

Fast Trak™ is extremely versatile as the four-sided bracket provides suspension points on each face. Thanks to its ‘channel style’ return, Fast Trak™ can be used with standard channel nut fixings along with Gripple’s range of fixings and accessories.

Indicators at the end of each bracket offer measurement guide when marking fixing points on the ceiling. M4 level markers on the tracks highlight 50mm increments with no levelling tools required.

All Fast Trak™ pre-fabricated tracks and brackets are organised in user friendly packaging, with a handle, making it easy to carry on-site. The system can also be stacked tidily on-site to reduce storage requirements. Instructions for Fast Trak™ are included on the packaging, with a QR code link, which removes the need for further paper usage.

Gripple is committed to providing customers with greener solutions that reduce carbon and maximise use of recycled materials. For contractors and developers, use of Fast Trak™ offers minimal waste due to the fact that 95% of packaging is FSC cardboard, which is recyclable.

Tray clips are included as part of the packaging, which customers can use on their project to clip the cable trays to the Fast Trak™ brackets. 

Each track and bracket system can suspend a maximum weight up to 200kg with a 3:1 safety factor to deliver all the strength of a rod system with added flexibility and easy use.

For more information about the new Fast Trak™ system visit the website www.gripple.com/fast-trak or view the YouTube channel