The Metal Construction Association’s (MCA) 2014 Summer Meeting was held in June in Chicago. The meeting was well attended with a number of first-time attendees and new member companies. It featured a busy agenda of technical activity.
The Codes and Standards Committee discussed actions by the Cool Roof Rating Council, ASTM Standard Development, and the state energy codes for both California and New York. The International Code Conference (ICC) focused on the International Green Construction Code (IgCC) this year with more than 600 proposals submitted for the Memphis, Tenn., hearings in April. The deadline for public comment was in July, and the final code action will take place in the fall. IgCC proposals of interest are outlined in the Codes and Standards slide presentation, which MCA members can access on the MCA website. Lack of adoption of this code has led to discussion about merging ASHRAE, IgCC and LEED into a single enforcement effort.
The ICC code proposals for the 2018 International Building Code
(IBC) group A are due early January 2015 for hearings prior to implementation of the 2018 International Building Code. January proposals were submitted to MCA staff in August.
In the Roofing Council meeting, it was reported that the “Metal Roofing Installation Manual” is nearing completion and should be available at METALCON in Denver. A major research project on wind uplift of discontinuous metal roofing systems was presented. The work will take place at the University of Florida and will take 18 months to complete. The goal is to develop a new wind uplift test that predicts performance better than the current uplift tests being used. The materials involved in the research include metal shake, metal shingle, metal tile and snap-together standing seam roof panels. Another research project described at the meeting took place at Florida International University at their Wall of Wind facility. Standing seam metal roofing was evaluated for resistance to wind and water penetration. Data are now being reviewed and will be reported shortly.
In the Retrofit Council meeting, discussion continued on a design guide that is being reviewed by the council. The final report on the Department of Defense’s (DOD) Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP) demonstration project was also presented. An unannounced and unanticipated change in the building use by the Goodfellow Air Force Base personnel significantly compromised the results. Energy savings with the fully integrated metal roof retrofit system were modeled in various climate zones by Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Other benefits from the retrofit project are being summarized by MCA.
The Insulated Metal Panel (IMP) Council moved forward with planned testing to establish Long-Term Thermal Resistance (LTTR) values for IMP materials through a valid testing program. The program will include test data for up to 5 years and is intended to show the ongoing positive insulation values that can be obtained using IMP systems. The IMP Council also discussed development of industry support papers to explain the successful use of IMP wall systems without a separate need for weather barriers and clarification of thermal bridging as defined in ASHRAE.
The MCM Fabricators Council is working on sev- eral tools that will aid in the use of metal composite material (MCM) systems. First is a generic specification that defined the performance of not only the panel, but the installation system used. Historically, it has been difficult to link the panel manufacturer, fabricator and installer together in a specification. When completed, this document will provide both information and a format to accomplish this. The MCM Fabricator Council is also looking for a means to validate the performance of similar systems without having to run a specific full scale fire apparatus.
Our goal is to make the technical efforts of MCA of greater value to both our membership and the construction market at large. We feel that creation and communication of proper, high-quality construction standards will elevate the use of metal over other construction materials.
We strongly encourage producers, users and installation contractors working with metal materials to become involved with the development of these training documents to ensure they are properly represented in the construction world.
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Scott Kriner is the president of Green Metal Consulting Inc., Macungie, Pa., and a principal in RSK Avanti Partners LLC, Richardson, Texas. He is a LEED Accredited Professional (Operations and Maintenance) and wrote a book titled “Wait and See.” He also serves the Metal Construction Association as technical director.
Andy Williams is the director of codes and standards for the Metal Construction Association. He is a professional engineer who began his career in the wall cladding industry in 1982. For more information about MCA, go to www.metalconstruction.org and www.themetalinitiative.com.
