When a fire broke out at the manufacturing facility of a metal finishing company in Houston, Texas, the company sustained moderate damage as a result. According to a fire department official, however, the outcome could have been much worse.

Had it not been for the fact that two years prior the company replaced the metal panels on the sides and roof of their building with Phase-2 PVC building panels, the company would have lost most of its production facility.

According to the fire department official, since Phase-2 PVC is classified as a Factory Mutual Approved non-combustible material with a low flame-spread rating of 12, the fire was not given the opportunity to spread by way of surface burning and was confined to the corner of the building where it originated. The accumulated heat of the fire caused the panels to melt out on the sides and roof of the building,ventilating the fire. If the building panels had been metal, the fire would have burned much hotter, creating much more heat, and would have spread to the entire production facility and the company's office area, destroying all of the company's records and files.

As a result of using Phase-2 PVC panels and some swift help from the fire department, production was able to resume within 24 hours after the fire. The company has since replaced all the damaged material with Phase-2 PVC building panels.

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