ISOPAN LAUNCHES FORTELIA: THE NEW OUTPERFORMING ENVELOPE SOLUTION

Fortelia, the system we have been waiting for: the new solution developed by Isopan’s R&D Department makes it possible to outperfrom the market, in terms of both insulation and stability, thanks to the metal sandwich panel’s special profile.  

And it doesn’t stop there. The extraordinary performance of Fortelia offers countless applications. «Fortelia brings together Manni Group’s three distinguishing critical factors of success» explains Enrico Frizzera, CEO at Manni Group, namely: 

• Innovation: Fortelia represents a great technological leap in the world of envelope solutions;  
• Internationalisation: Fortelia was conceived without borders, to respond to international needs, designed at Italian R&D laboratories in collaboration with the best of the academic world;  
• Sustainability: thanks to the thermal performance and optimized transportation, the product offers a significant contribution in terms of Life Cycle Assessment, therefore the environmental impact of the building. 

The idea comes from the need for a specific product that was able to cover structures with large spans. It was possible to develop Fortelia thanks to the collaboration between the Isopan R&D Department and the Politecnico di Milano in terms of thermal insulation, and with the University of Trieste, with whom they determined the shape of the panel to fulfil the pre-set performance-related objectives. 

Fortelia has three main strong points: 

• Greater static load capacity – «Compared to a standard roof panel, we have up to a 50% greater load capacity thanks to the profile of the metal sheet and the ribbing» explains Rocco Traini, Technical R&D Manager at Isopan SpA. In fact, the flexural stiffness of the product has been enhanced by 30% on the entire corrugated sheet. This allows the solution to be applied to spans up to 50% broader (this value was obtained through the Analysis on Finished Elements conducted on a Software specifically designed for Fortelia in collaboration with the University of Trieste). 
• Better energy performance - An unchanged thermal insulation performance value (U Value) is guaranteed with a 25% reduction of the panel thickness, thanks to the contribution of the corrugation.  
• Versatility - It is a multifunctional product that can be applied to roofs or walls, with different purposes depending on the orientation of the ribs. Panels used on roofs are installed with the ribbing facing outwards on sloping roofs, as opposed to ribbing facing inwards on flat roofs. Panels installed on walls with the ribbing facing outwards offer solutions with high aesthetic value and design such as ventilated facades, with a broad range of finishes; the space between the ribs positioned internally, on the other hand, can become a support for the building systems.