Four steps to successful roofing projects BY BRIAN LAMBERT
Schools require unique, rugged roofing solutions that are easy to maintain and provide long-term leak-free solutions.
Facility managers, school administrators, and design profes-
ects. Due to downsizing and budget cuts, most facility man-
sionals commonly report roofing problems as one of their
agers no longer have an experienced roofing expert on staff.
most pressing needs and frequently cited headaches.1
Therefore it is important to find someone you trust and
Whether you have a handful of facilities or 22 campuses to
respect to help manage your roofing program: an architect,
care for, it often seems as though there are one or more roofs
your local roofing contractor, or a technically trained manu-
in need of repair or replacement each year. For school facili-
facturer’s representative.
ty managers and hospital administrators, longevity, durability,
Qualified roofing professionals can assist you by:
rugged performance, and ease of repair are vital to roof
• Properly identifying roofing problems
design. To help secure the high level of performance that
• Providing yearly budgets estimates
schools and hospitals, it is helpful to understand four critical
• Prioritizing roof problems by degree of severity
components:
• Identifying which roofs can be restored and which ones
• Proper analysis, evaluation, and design • Quality products
need to be replaced • Supporting the design team responsible for developing
• Proper application and regular inspection
technical specifications and details that are customized to
• Corrective and preventive maintenance
your specific roof-top problems Roofs will rarely leak in the field of the roof. Therefore, it is
Proper Analysis, Evaluation, and Design
important to spend your time and effort focused on flashings.
Understanding what you have and why you are having
Address these common problem areas first. In assessing the
problems is critical to all projects – especially roofing proj-
condition of roofs or searching for existing roof leaks, start at
38 Ops Talk • Spring 2011
