Roofing is big business, and reroofing comprises the majority of this market. Metal roofing and metal framing systems as the retrofit material of choice continues to grow in popularity for many reasons. Service life, energy savings, design flexibility, solar energy system compatibility and cost effectiveness are leading reasons why retrofitting with metal roofing systems is so popular.
A new retrofit roofing manual provides practical instructions for meeting the demand of this growing market
Retrofit metal roofing is a large and expanding component of the overall metal roofing systems’ above-average annual growth rate in market annually as building owners learn of the many advantages metal roofing offers. This trend is forecasted to increase for the foreseeable future.
You and your firm can learn how to gain a part of this growing industry beginning with the Metal Construction Association’s (MCA) most recent publication, “Retrofit Metal Roofing.” The flexibility of design details of metal-over-flat roofs, metal-over- metal roofs and metal framing systems, allows you to maximize your opportunities to impact your customers reroofing needs successfully. Detailed practical instructions are available to help make your retrofit projects as successful as possible.
Retrofit metal roofing systems began in the late 1970s and have evolved into today’s multidimensional industry, addressing low- and steep-slope roofing, metal-over-metal, metal-over-traditional roofing and metal framing systems to create new roofing options that meet or exceed today’s codes. MCA’s guidelines address specific construction techniques and its member firms provide state-of-the-art products and engineering to help you succeed in this exciting roofing market.
Let’s Look at What Is Available:
Product Testing Reviews of UL (UL-90 Uplift Rating), Factory Mutual (FM 4471 Class 1 Roof Panels), American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM E1952 Uplift) and American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM E283 Air Infiltration and ASTM E33 Water Penetration) provide the basics to understand what needs to be engineered into all retrofit projects to provide your customers long-lasting performance.
Roles and Responsibilities of the professionals that will be involved in your retrofit projects include the roles of manufacturers, bid and contract documents, construction project scope and design professionals. Areas addressed include effects on existing buildings as well as one’s end customer, contractors and installers.
Fundamental Issues include design considerations, installation precautions, existing building inspection requirements, structural analysis of existing roof systems and its impacts, and detailed material attributes and weights, insulation values and performance of virtually all of the materials one will encounter when retrofitting roofs.
Applications and Systems address the myriad roofing configurations one will encounter when retrofitting metal and non-metal roofs, and the metal framing systems requirements to successfully accomplish these challenges. Options to maximize framing performance are clearly explained for virtually all roofing systems.
Framing System Design identifies performance and design requirements. Roofing support design is thoroughly defined, addressing structural grid designs for bar joist, truss, beams, etc., including tributary load considerations of the retrofit systems and external loads such as snow or wind impacts. How to address hips and valleys, anchoring systems and compression resistance of the old roof being retrofitted is fully explained. Detailed drawings explaining issues encountered when designing metal framing systems are included to assist your design, materials and installation process decisions.
Separate Chapters offer design and installation procedures for metal-over-metal roofing, and metal roof, wall and soffit systems present materials to assist owners, designers, specifiers and contractors. It will explain the options available to create the best retrofit solution for specific reroofing situations. Details to clearly present the materials and options are there to guide retrofit design and installation decisions.
Energy Efficient Reroofing Systems explains how to achieve LEED certification, increase thermal resistance as well as implement renewable solar technologies, thermal air and water systems, above sheathing ventilation, and rainwater harvesting system design and installation. The goal is to embrace today’s almost universal appeal to build and retrofit buildings to be as energy efficient as possible.
Summary
Retrofit metal roofing systems are exceptionally effective in extending existing buildings’ lives for decades with less maintenance than competing options while improving energy efficiency, and to do so cost effectively.
Karl Hielscher is executive director of the Metal Construction Association. Hielscher has more than 25 years of experience in the metal construction industry, and was president and CEO of a Metl-Span, Lewisville, Texas, for more than 20 years. For more information, go to www.metalconstruction.org.
