Where the fears about toxicity come from
Two sources. The first: the odour after hot installation of PVC film — real, but short-lived; it disappears after airing within 24–48 hours and has nothing to do with emissions during use. The second: films of unknown origin, sold by the metre without documents, installed by companies that can show neither a hygiene certificate nor a fire classification. These are what give the whole category a bad name. The difference between a certified EU-made membrane and such a film is exactly the difference between certified paint and paint from a market stall.
What fire classes A2 and B-s1,d0 mean
The European reaction-to-fire classification (Euroclasses) describes how a material behaves in contact with fire. The letter is the main class: A1 and A2 mean non-combustible materials, B — non-flammable materials that do not sustain fire, C and below — increasingly combustible. The additional markings cover smoke (s1 — low, s2 — limited, s3 — no limit) and flaming droplets (d0 — none, d1 — droplets that extinguish, d2 — no limit). So B-s1,d0 reads: non-flammable, low smoke emission, no flaming droplets.
Our polyester has class A2 — it is non-combustible, which in public buildings is sometimes a condition for the material being approved at all. Our PVC film has class B-s1,d0 according to classification report no. 449/BW/20, issued by the Józef Tuliszkowski Scientific and Research Centre for Fire Protection — National Research Institute (CNBOP-PIB) in Józefów, an accredited laboratory (PCA AB 1280) that classifies construction materials for reaction to fire in Poland.
Which documents our material has
We can attach a complete set of documents to every project. The table below shows what each document confirms and where it is required.
| Document / marking | What it confirms | Where required |
|---|---|---|
| Class A2 — polyester | non-combustible material under the Euroclasses | public buildings, hotels, schools, offices |
| Class B-s1,d0 — PVC film | non-flammable, low smoke emission, no flaming droplets | commercial and public premises; not required by law in homes |
| Reaction-to-fire classification report | no. 449/BW/20, CNBOP-PIB Józefów (accredited laboratory PCA AB 1280) | handover documentation for buildings with fire-safety requirements |
| PVC film emission test | test report no. MAIC-2018-2563, Fraunhofer-Institut — no harmful emissions during use | always worth having; required in education and healthcare facilities |
| Declaration of performance / product data sheet | membrane parameters consistent with the manufacturer's declaration | handover documentation, tenders |
Where documentation is required by law and where it is worth having
In public buildings — schools, nurseries, hotels, restaurants, offices, shops — the fire-safety requirements for finishing materials are formal: the fire-safety expert or inspector at handover will ask for the reaction-to-fire classification, and without it the ceiling may not be approved. That is why we attach the classification report and the product data sheet to commercial projects as standard, without being asked.
In flats and detached houses the law does not require you to have documents for the ceiling. It is still worth having them — for two reasons. When selling or letting a flat, buyers increasingly ask about finishing materials. And above all: the emission test report — for our PVC film carried out by the Fraunhofer-Institut, no. MAIC-2018-2563 — is the only proof that the material above your head has been tested. If a contractor cannot show such a document, that is a warning sign regardless of the price.
Health: emissions, odour and the origin of the film
A certified membrane emits no harmful substances during use — for our PVC film this is confirmed by Fraunhofer-Institut test report no. MAIC-2018-2563. The short-lived odour after hot installation of PVC is the effect of heating the plastic and disappears after airing; cold-installed polyester does not smell at all. Ask where the film comes from: our PVC is made in Częstochowa, the polyester in Belgium, both at the Stretch group's plants, with full documentation. Film from an unknown source may be a few dozen PLN per metre cheaper — and that is the only thing known about it for certain.
Recycling: PVC is a fully recyclable plastic, and our PVC film is made with a share of recovered material — hence the name recyclable PVC ceiling in our range. A membrane taken down after years of use does not go to landfill as waste that cannot be processed.