Chris Barnett from Barnett Construction Ltd has constructed a wide range of homes and has done so for 30 years. When building his own home, Chris did a little research and discovered Masons Plastabrick's ThermalCrete panels, and was impressed with what he read.

The lightweight, cavity based, exterior panel system features interlocking panels that add extra security and stability during the construction period, and with a compressive strength of 5MPa, is stronger than its AAC competitors and exceeds the NZBC requirements.

ThermalCrete's superior waterproof substrate is achieved by the manufacturing process, where the sheets are bonded together – not laminated – like other lightweight concrete panels on the market. It is strong and water repellent, while its energy efficient qualities give ThermalCrete an excellent thermal rating and contributes to reducing external noise. ThermalCrete is also CodeMark certified, which gave Chris the confidence to use a product he had not used to date.

Chris was pleased he used ThermalCrete and will continue to use the product in future.

"The tongue and groove system provided a more rigid, straighter system and was stable on the wall," says Chris. "It was also very easy to cut and install, and provided better insulation than any other products I've used. All this with the added bonus that it did not tend to crumble on the edges."