A terracotta rainscreen is accepted as a coordinated wall system, not as panels installed to a generic list of dimensions. Panel geometry, clips, rails, brackets, anchors, substrate, insulation, membranes, cavity barriers, flashings and joints must be resolved against the project’s loads, movements, water strategy, fire requirements and applicable approvals.
This guide organizes the decisions and records needed before and during installation. It replaces the legacy page’s unsourced universal tolerances, joint widths and panel-removal movements with project-specific drawings, calculations, method statements, inspection plans and authorized dispositions.
- Design basis
- Applicable codes, loads, movements and approved system evidence
- Starting condition
- Surveyed, accepted substrate and coordinated interfaces
- Hidden work
- Anchors, membranes, insulation, flashings and fire barriers
- Appearance control
- Approved samples, layout drawings and full-size mock-up
- Site control
- Inspection and test plan with records and hold points
- Deviation control
- NCR, technical review, approved disposition and closeout
Fix the design basis and responsibility matrix
Before procurement or installation, identify who owns the architectural layout, structural design, anchor-to-substrate design, water/air/vapour control, insulation, fire and cavity-barrier strategy, movement interfaces, testing, temporary works, access, installation, inspection and maintenance. Contract documents should resolve gaps and overlaps rather than relying on the installer to infer them on site.
Design team
Coordinates appearance, module, joints, building movements, structural loads, envelope layers, fire strategy and performance criteria under the project’s codes and authority requirements.
System supplier
Provides current panel and component identification, drawings, permissible configurations, material compatibility, handling limits, test evidence and installation/maintenance information for the quoted system.
Contractor and installer
Surveys actual conditions, plans access and sequencing, protects materials, follows approved methods, records installation and raises conflicts or deviations before covering the work.
The responsible facade or structural engineer should establish the design loads and combinations—including self-weight, wind pressure and suction, seismic movement, impact and other project actions—and verify the load path through panels, clips, rails, brackets, anchors and substrate. Product literature alone does not approve the project-specific substrate, fasteners or geometry.
Set preconstruction readiness gates
- current coordinated drawings, specification, calculations, product data, approvals and interface details with revision control;
- panel schedule, finish range, corners, returns, openings, penetrations, datum, set-out and replacement-access strategy;
- as-built substrate survey, material/capacity confirmation, embed or anchor zones, edges, obstructions and accepted deviations;
- water, air and vapour layers; insulation; cavity drainage/ventilation; flashings; sealants/gaskets; fire-stops and cavity barriers;
- compatibility and corrosion review for metals, isolators, membranes, setting materials, sealants and cleaning products;
- representative visual and performance mock-ups plus project tests, acceptance criteria and responsible witnesses;
- method statements for receipt, storage, lifting, access, temporary restraint, installation, protection, cleaning and replacement; and
- an inspection and test plan covering hold points, records, sampling, calibrated tools, NCRs and closeout.
Confirm that the substrate is sufficiently complete, stable and accessible for the approved anchor and bracket design. Survey line, level, plumb, geometry, embeds, joints, edges, damage and other trades’ work against the project tolerances. If the actual condition falls outside the design allowance, obtain an engineered adjustment; do not force rails into alignment or improvise packers, slots or fixings.
Coordinate hidden layers and movement
Trace the intended drainage path from every panel joint and opening to a safe discharge. Coordinate membranes and flashings at windows, doors, parapets, roofs, soffits, base details, penetrations and transitions. The outer terracotta layer is not, by itself, the water-, air- or vapour-control layer.
Insulation continuity, thermal bridges, membrane penetrations and fastener seals require system-specific details. Fire-stops and cavity barriers must follow the project’s fire strategy and approved assembly, including continuity at slabs, openings, compartment lines and changes in cavity geometry. Do not infer whole-wall fire performance from the terracotta face alone.
Allow for panel and subframe thermal movement, building drift, structural deflection, concrete creep or shrinkage and movements at adjacent systems. Joint dimensions and clip engagement must come from current calculations, test evidence and coordinated drawings. A visual gap is not proof that movement, drainage or retention is adequate.
Use mock-ups and tests to close decisions
The visual mock-up should represent the approved colour/texture range, panel orientation, joints, corners, cuts, returns, interfaces and cleaning outcome. Keep labelled boundary samples and agree inspection distance, lighting and permissible variation. A performance mock-up or project test should reproduce the relevant build-up and interfaces when required; define loads, sequence, instrumentation, observations, pass/fail criteria and repair/retest rules before testing.
On-site anchor proof or pull testing, water testing, structural checks, impact tests or other QA may be appropriate, but sampling, loads, locations and acceptance thresholds must be designed for the project and exact anchor/substrate/system. This page supplies none of those values.
Inspect installation before work is concealed
Receive and trace
Check item, finish, batch, dimensions, packing and visible damage against approved records; quarantine unidentifiable, cracked, chipped or contaminated components.
Accept hidden work
Record substrate, anchors, brackets, isolators, rails, membranes, flashings, insulation and fire barriers at the specified hold points before panels conceal them.
Verify panel engagement
Inspect the approved clip or fixing position, bearing, restraint, movement allowance, joints, edges, cuts, alignment and interfaces without assuming every panel uses the legacy back-notch description.
Protect and hand over
Control sealant, paint, grinding dust and other contamination; complete approved cleaning trials, as-built records, spares, O&M information and final inspections.
Record component IDs, locations, installer, date, substrate and weather conditions, approved tool settings where relevant, measurements, photographs, test results and sign-offs. Installation order may depend on panel/fixing design, access, temporary stability, floors or zones and interface sequencing; use the approved method rather than a universal bottom-to-top instruction.
Control nonconformance and replacement
When damage, misalignment, missed fixing, substrate conflict, membrane breach, incomplete fire barrier, out-of-tolerance condition or unapproved substitution is found, identify the location, stop or isolate affected work as required and raise a nonconformance record. The responsible technical parties should assess consequence and issue a documented disposition: reject/replace, repair to an approved method, accept as-is with justification, or redesign and retest.
Do not field-drill, grind, bend, pack, slot, coat or reconfigure components without authorization. Panel removal and replacement depend on the exact clip, joint and access arrangement; the legacy lift distance, rotation angle and five-step sequence are not republished. After corrective work, repeat the required inspection or test and close the NCR with traceable evidence.
Final cleaning must follow the approved surface-specific method and mock-up. Test the least aggressive compatible process; do not use universal acids, abrasives, solvents or pressure settings. Confirm how replacement panels can be accessed without damaging adjacent panels or hidden envelope layers, and hand over labelled spares where specified.
Convert the facade design into an inspectable work package
Share the panel schedule, system drawings, substrate, loads, interface details, fire and water strategy, mock-up/test plan, programme and site constraints. Current project documents—not archived dimensions—should govern procurement, installation and acceptance.