- Insulated core bonded between steel skins
- Improves thermal performance
- Reduces condensation risk
- Single fix installation
- Made to order
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Insulated Cladding Panels
An insulated panel carries a rigid insulating core bonded between an outer and inner steel skin. The whole build-up arrives as one component and is fixed in a single operation, rather than assembling a liner, spacers, insulation and outer sheet separately on site.
For walls this matters most where the building is heated, or where condensation on the inner face would cause problems for stored goods, machinery or livestock. A single skin wall in a heated building is a cold surface with warm, moist air against it, and the result is predictable.
The same approach applies to the roof. Our composite roof panels and twin skin systems cover the options there.
What it improves
- Heat loss through the wall
- Condensation risk on the inner face
- Installation time compared with a built-up system
- Consistency of the insulation layer
- Sound transfer through the elevation
Cold bridging
The continuous core means the only significant thermal path through the panel is at the fixings and the joints. That is a much smaller problem than a built-up system with gaps in the insulation, but it is not nothing.
Our guide to stopping cold bridging explains why it matters and where bridges usually occur.
Insulated or built-up?
A built-up, or twin skin, system assembles the same layers on site: a liner sheet, spacers, insulation, then the outer cladding. It is more adaptable where the geometry is awkward and can be worked around existing structure, but it takes longer and its performance depends on how carefully the insulation is laid.
An insulated panel trades that flexibility for speed and consistency. The insulation is the same thickness everywhere because it was bonded in the factory, and there are fewer operations to get wrong at height.
Our article on insulated or twin skin works through the comparison for roofs, and the same reasoning applies to walls.
Insulated walls and roofs together
There is little point insulating walls to a good standard and leaving the roof as a single skin, or the other way round. Heat leaves by whichever route is easiest, and an uninsulated roof over insulated walls will still be the cold surface that condensation forms on.
Where the whole envelope is being upgraded, our insulated roofing range covers the roof, and overcladding is worth considering where an existing covering is sound enough to stay in place.
Where full insulation is not warranted, anti-condensation sheets deal with the drips without addressing the heat loss. Our article on condensation under steel roof sheets explains the difference between the two approaches.
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Frequently Asked Questions
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What is the difference between insulated and anti-condensation cladding?
Insulation reduces heat loss, which moves the cold surface and reduces how much condensation forms. Anti-condensation does not insulate; it holds the condensate in a felt layer until it can evaporate. They solve different halves of the same problem.
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Is an insulated panel quicker to fit than a built-up system?
Generally yes. The panel arrives as one component and is fixed once, rather than assembling a liner, spacers, insulation and outer sheet separately on site.
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Do insulated panels reduce noise?
They reduce rain noise noticeably, because the bonded core damps the drumming rather than leaving a thin steel sheet free to resonate. See are metal roofs noisy when raining.
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Can I insulate the walls and leave the roof single skin?
You can, but you will not get the benefit you paid for. The roof will remain the coldest surface and the main route for heat loss.
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Are insulated panels made to order?
Yes. Tell us the elevation sizes and how the building is used and we will quote the build-up to suit.
Talk to us about the right build-up for your building.
