Many apartment buildings across Australia have balcony enclosures installed by unit owners — often non-compliant with NCC C2.6, which requires spandrel fire separation between vertically separated units.
These installations typically use non fire-rated glazing slab-to-slab to maximise light and views. The non-compliance only surfaces during a fire safety audit or when a new DA is lodged.
A common point of confusion: NCC C2.6 calls for an FRL of -/60/60, not 60/60/60. The first value refers to structural adequacy, and a spandrel is not a structural element.
Nilfire has developed a glazing system tested to AS 1530 Part 4 achieving -/60/60 FRL, with assessment from BRANZ (NATA accredited) confirming full compliance with C2.6. The system can be installed internally — behind existing non-compliant glazing — or externally with new non-rated glazing above, suitable for both retrofit and new enclosure projects.
A complete Data Sheet is available on our Data Sheets page. For technical enquiries or site assessments, contact our team via nilfire.com.au.