Integrated fiber cement and foam as insulated cladding with enhancements

An exterior cladding system for building structures, comprising:

• a first panel and a second panel, wherein each of the first panel and the second panel comprises a fiber cement layer and a foam layer, wherein the fiber cement layer of each of the first panel and the second panel is pre-attached to the respective foam layer by an adhesive selected to accommodate stresses generated by cyclic differential expansion between the fiber cement layer and the foam layer, the foam layer of each of the first panel and the second panel comprising a planar surface with a plurality of protrusions rising above the planar surface;
• and
• wherein the foam layer of the first panel comprises an elongate mating channel defined by two opposing sidewalls formed along a longitudinal edge of the foam layer of the first panel, wherein the foam layer of the second panel comprises an elongate protrusion formed along a longitudinal edge of the foam layer of the second panel, said protrusion on the foam layer of the second panel is configured to be received into the mating channel on the foam layer of the first panel in a manner such that the sidewalls formed on the foam layer of the first panel enclose the protrusion formed on the foam layer of the second panel in a manner such that the foam layers of the first and second panels interlock,
• wherein a reinforcement mesh layer is embedded in the foam layer of the first panel or the second panel.