Aluminum composite material: ACP panels and their cores

What aluminium composite material is

Aluminium composite material is a flat sheet built like a sandwich: two aluminium cover sheets bonded to a core between them. The brand name is often searched on its own, as “alucobond sheet”. ALUCOBOND uses cover sheets of 0.5 mm aluminium alloy EN AW 5005A (AlMg1), painted in a coil-coating line before the panel is made, according to the ALUCOBOND PLUS product page.

The stiffness for the weight is the point of the product. ALUCOBOND states that a 3 mm PLUS panel is as rigid as a 2.7 mm solid aluminium sheet, yet weighs 5.9 kg/m² against 7.3 kg/m².

ACP cores: PE, fire-retardant and A2

The core decides how an ACP sheet behaves in fire, and it is the part you cannot see once the panel is painted on both faces.

ACP cores: PE, fire-retardant and A2

Core	What it is	Fire class under EN 13501-1	Example
Polyethylene (PE)	plastic core; ALUCOBOND refers to panels with a black PE core	the maker gives no class; it says its PLUS panel rates better than panels with a black PE core	standard ACP
Fire-retardant (FR)	mineral-filled polymer core	B-s1, d0	ALUCOBOND PLUS
A2	mineral fillers with a polymer binder	A2-s1, d0, described by the maker as non-combustible	ALUCOBOND A2

Which core a façade needs is set by the building’s fire design and the rules where it stands. This page does not cover Tanzanian building regulations; ask the designer which class the drawings require before you order.

ACP sheet thickness, weight and size

ACP sheet thickness, weight and size

ALUCOBOND panel	Thickness	Weight	Widths	Lengths
PLUS	3 mm	5.9 kg/m²	1000, 1250, 1500 mm (1575, 1750 on request)	2000–6800 mm
PLUS	4 mm	7.6 kg/m²	as above	2000–6800 mm
A2	3 or 4 mm	5.9 or 7.6 kg/m²	1000–1650 mm; standard 1250 and 1500 mm	2000–6800 mm

A 4 mm sheet of 1250 × 4000 mm covers 5 m² and weighs about 38 kg (our calculation from the 7.6 kg/m² figure). ALUCOBOND gives the PLUS panel a temperature range of −50 to +80°C, a sound reduction index Rw of at least 25 dB and a 6 mm version on request. Its cover sheets have a tensile strength of at least 130 N/mm².

ACP or aluminium sheet

ACP or aluminium sheet

	ACP (ALUCOBOND PLUS 3 mm)	Solid aluminium sheet
Thickness for the same stiffness	3 mm	2.7 mm
Weight	5.9 kg/m²	7.3 kg/m²

Source: ALUCOBOND PLUS product page.

What to check when you buy ACP sheets

1. Core type — PE, FR or A2 — and a document with its EN 13501-1 class; look at a cut edge, where the core shows.
2. Cover sheet thickness. ALUCOBOND uses 0.5 mm on each side; ask for the figure on any other brand of alu composite panel.
3. Total thickness and weight per square metre, so the frame and fixings are sized for the real panel.
4. Sheet width and length against the façade grid, to limit off-cuts.
5. Coating and colour series, as widths can depend on the colour, ALUCOBOND notes.

Where ACP panels are used

ALUCOBOND presents PLUS and A2 as façade panels, and lists balconies, roofs and corporate design among its fields of use. For interior wall and ceiling boards, see fibre cement board and gypsum board.

Aluminium composite panel in Zanzibar

Kitovu sells from stock in Zanzibar, and ACP sheets are not among its products. For thermal insulation materials, compared by R value, see insulation.