Following extensive consultation with industry stakeholders, SFS has responded to the market by introducing its new Tightlapper® fastener range which offers specifiers and cladding specialists radically improved performance plus simplicity, in place of what can be confusing choices. Pivotal to the success of the innovative CXLW-4.8 and SXL2-6.3 variants are their common AV-Shaped sealing washer and individual high performance drilling points.
The Leeds based manufacturer has a long track record of innovation in the field of fasteners and cladding support systems, as well as offering industry professionals unrivalled technical and logistical support: with Tightlapper® the latest example of SFS’s innovation, set to simplify the installation of cladding panels and flashings across the entire building envelope.
Where contractors were once confronted with a complex choice of different fixings, now just two variants can address virtually any application, while both feature the use of the same AV-Shaped EPDM sealing washer which is sculpted to ensure 100% watertightness once tightened; adapting to different panel contours and accommodating larger build-ups. Meanwhile the precision engineered thread has been designed to ensure neither vibration nor thermal movement will unwind its grip.
Then as an advancement on conventional clamping fasteners, Tightlapper® CXLW-4.8 incorporates the FastTip® pierce-point to avoid chipping powder coat surface finishes or generating swarf. The fastener further features a ‘spin-free’ zone and cut-off thread which means no torque control is required while also securing against unwinding.
Assistant Product Manager for SFS, Francesca McGibbon, comments:
“Our new Tightlapper® range is going to provide a more efficient and easier means of securing any panel across the entire envelope, onto steel or timber members, delivering considerable time savings as well as other technical benefits. Our revolutionary AV-Shaped washers will ensure installation is simple and totally watertight. In fact, the versatility and drilling capabilities of our SXL2-6.3, along with the rapid installation characteristics of our FastTip® CXLW-4.8 will vastly improve the installer’s experience.
“Significantly, the FastTip® CXLW-4.8 has already been trialled by many of the major profile manufacturers (OEMs) who can recognise the technical advantages, while we’re also targeting installers to show them the practical advantages, such as how the fixing is so rapid and easy to install.”
The SXL2-6.3 additionally offers enhanced drilling capabilities to facilitate the installation of multiple overlapping profiles. Across the variants it covers a clamping range from 0.88-6.5mm offering great versatility.
As a consequence of its innovative design, the Tightlapper® range delivers a solution to meet every requirement on site, effectively offering a universal solution across the entire envelope. This adaptability includes the CXLW-4.8, being available with a D10 head and A11 washer, instead of a hex head, for fixing flashings.
Both the Tightlapper® CXLW-4.8 and SXL2-6.3 carry ETA-10/0198 approval and are available in a wide selection of RAL colours on standard lead times through the SFS supply chain.
For further information, call 0330 0555888 or visit https://uk.sfs.com/