Mealey's (April 25, 2019, 8:38 AM EDT) -- WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPMDL) on April 2 consolidated and centralized in South Carolina federal court seven lawsuits filed in different states claiming that Allura and Maxitile brands of fiber cement siding made by Plycem USA LLC and Elementia S.A.B. De. C.V. are defective because they prematurely crack and split and that the makers misrepresented the products’ durability (In re: Allura Fiber Cement Siding Products Liability Litigation, MDL 2886, JPMDL, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 57061)....