ATI announces Los Angeles test lab debut

Southwestern window and door manufacturers, architects and specifiers now have a convenient regional source for performance testing of fenestration products and systems, with York, Pa.-based Architectural Testing’s new laboratory in Lake Forest, Calif., a southeastern suburb of Los Angeles, according to an Oct. 20 release.

Officially openedSept. 30, the laboratory, like all ATI laboratories, is configured for accreditation to ISO/IEC 17025 (the international standard governing the competence of testing and calibration laboratories), and is now in the process of obtaining that credential through the International Accreditation Service. The Los Angeles facility also will be accredited by the American Architectural Manufacturers Association, Schaumburg, Ill., and Dade County, Fla., for conducting window and door certification tests specified by those authorities.

The 10,000-square-foot installation is fully equipped to conduct testing for the basic window and door performance attributes of resistance to wind loading, water leakage, air infiltration and forced entry. A positive test report enables certification and compliance labeling of products per the omnibus AAMA/WDMA/CSA 101/IS2/A440 North American Fenestration Standard, mandated by the International Building and Residential codes. Additional tests can be conducted for resistance to impact from wind-borne debris (critical for products intended for use in hurricane-susceptible zones, as required by Miami-Dade TAS test protocols), negative pressures and for the performance of mulled assemblies. Various other methods for testing to AAMA and ASTM requirements are also available.

The Los Angeles laboratory – the 11th in ATI’s network of regional laboratories located strategically throughout the U.S. – works in conjunction with ATI’s Fresno, Calif., laboratory to provide coordinated solar and thermal testing and modeling services that include the world’s largest solar calorimeter and a thermal test chamber capable of running two separate tests simultaneously and accommodating a total of six products a day up to 10-foot-by-10-foot in size, according to the release.

The Los Angeles facility additionally offers a convenient local platform for plant inspection services for manufacturers participating in ATI’s certification programs for the Florida Product Approval program, acoustic performance, blast resistance, roof impact resistance and other building product performance aspects. It was previously well established as home base for ATI field testing, forensic evaluation, inspection, condition surveys and Architectural Commissioning services for the Greater Los Angeles and Southwest U.S. region.

"This laboratory was opened to better service new and existing customers in southern California and the whole Southwest," said Senior Project Manager Dave Kranz, a 20-year veteran of ATI’s testing operations, in the release.

"The field-oriented building sciences services available from the Los Angeles laboratory are also in increasing demand as both designers and building owners seek to ensure the intended installed performance of complex building envelope systems, and to identify the source of post-occupancy problems that could have performance liability implications," explained Vice President for Regional Operations Dan Braun, in the release. "The new laboratory’s testing capabilities will allow our existing local forensic and building sciences team the advantage of on-site testing for evaluating details, designs and perform mock up assessments quickly and economically."

For more information, contact Kranz at the ATI Los Angeles laboratory, 4 Rancho Circle, Lake Forest, CA, 92630, 949/460-9602, dkranz@archtest.com.