Asbestos contamination in imported materials used by New Zealand’s largest fire door manufacturer has triggered facility closures and a nationwide health and safety response.
The issue centred on a product known as “FRB core”, which Pacific Door Systems (PDS) and other manufacturers across Australia and New Zealand used to manufacture certain Pyropanel fire-rated doors.
Fire retardant boards were a crucial component of fire-rated doors, which were used in commercial buildings, apartment blocks, public buildings, hotels and industrial facilities, to slow the spread of fire.
The material, which did not contain asbestos by design, was sourced from a third-party supplier outside New Zealand.
Recent testing revealed traces of asbestos — banned from import into New Zealand since 2016 — in some batches of the material.
Asbestos exposure was the number one cause of workplace death in New Zealand, with around 220 people dying each year from preventable asbestos-related disease, such as mesothelioma, lung cancer, and asbestosis.
WorkSafe was notified of a potential health risk involving imported materials which may contain asbestos on June 30 and immediately alerted the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.
WorkSafe Central regional manager Nigel Formosa told 1News urgent assessments were conducted by inspectors at two companies – one of which was PDS.
“As a result, PDS sites in Wellington and Timaru were closed temporarily while they safely removed any asbestos-containing material and have since received independent clearance certificates and deemed safe for workers to return.”
Formosa said a “number of site visits” had been conducted with different companies where WorkSafe had been notified of similar concerns.
Ministry head of building system delivery and assurance Simon Thomas confirmed fire retardant boards imported from China and via Australia had tested positive for asbestos.
“Importing a product containing asbestos into New Zealand is restricted and must be authorised by a permit.”
The ministry was working with “multiple agencies and identified suppliers” to gather further information and determine the next steps, he said.
Testing begins at NZ’s largest manufacturer
PDS, New Zealand’s largest fire door manufacturer, published a public notice and was actively contacting affected customers.
The company emphasised the product did not contain asbestos “by design”.
“This is a contamination event in relation to which an explanation and more information is being sought from the relevant third-party manufacturer.”
Initial testing suggested only recently imported FRB core was affected.
However, PDS later confirmed that a fire-rated door manufactured and supplied approximately a year ago also tested positive for asbestos, prompting a broader investigation into past batches and products.
Extensive testing of previously manufactured doors and FRB core held in stock was being conducted, the company said in its notice.
“While the scope of the contamination issue remains under investigation, it will be prudent to handle any doors in the Potentially Impacted PDS Fire Door Categories as if they could contain asbestos, out of an abundance of caution.”
For doors already installed and undisturbed, PDS and regulators agreed they posed no immediate safety risk.
“However, should invasive or similar works on Potentially Impacted PDS Fire Door Categories be planned, then the safety-related considerations raised by the information above will obviously need to be taken into account.”
A full list of potentially impacted PDS fire doors can be found here.
