Building Safety from the Outside In: Fire Protection and Balcony Systems

This session provides architects with practical insight into prefabricated balcony systems and compliant timber use in multi-residential and mixed-use buildings. It covers Grappler’s modular balcony anatomy, compliance pathways, and the benefits of offsite manufacture for design efficiency, sustainability, and lifecycle performance, alongside guidance on specifying natural timber where fire ratings, height, and boundary conditions apply.

Belcanto | Mark Landkroon

Overview: This session provides architects and design professionals with a practical introduction to Grappler’s prefabricated balcony systems. The presentation explores the technical anatomy of the system, its compliance pathway, and how offsite manufacturing can streamline design and construction. Attendees will gain insight into how modular balcony solutions support sustainability objectives, improve lifecycle performance, and enhance design efficiency across multi residential and mixed use projects.

Learning Outcomes:

• Understand Grappler’s technical anatomy and compliance pathway.
• Understand the principles and components of prefabricated balcony systems.
• Explore its sustainability and lifecycle performance.
• Learn how modular balcony systems improve design efficiency.

Zone Architectural | Jonathan Rugg and Ash Barwood

Overview: Fire Ratings at the Edge: Compliant Timber Cladding & Linings in NZ Buildings. How to use natural timber in multi-residential/commercial builds when challenged by height, or boundary conditions which drive fire performance choices for timber.

Learning outcomes:

• Understand how NZBC fire requirements change with building use/type, height, and boundary conditions, and what that means in practice for timber cladding, balcony soffits, boundary-adjacent elements, and interior linings, including when paint/stain vs natural finish shifts the pathway.
• Choose the right system for soffits and cladding by matching the design intent to the correct technology: painted intumescent systems versus natural-finish fire-retardant solutions—and checking the basics for the application (exterior suitability, UV/moisture exposure, coating compatibility, maintenance expectations, and key junction detailing).
• Meet sustainability goals without compromising compliance by prioritising natural timber outcomes, low-VOC / low-toxicity options, and durable solutions that reduce recoating and rework over the life of the building.