International roofing expo 2017
Haag recently attended the International Roofing Expo in Las Vegas. It was good to catch up with clients, Haag-Certified Inspectors, and others in the industry who stopped by our booth. Thanks to all who took the time to say hello.
We wanted to highlight some of the interesting products showcased at the IRE this year. These products caught our eye and we thought to pass the information along. This is not an endorsement, nor have we attempted to exhaustively detail every new and innovative product showcased there. Such an effort would have diverted us from the many other distractions on offer in Vegas.
Those of us who access steep-sloped roofs for a living or enjoyment rely in part on appropriate footwear to safely traverse them. Shoes specific for roof access have been available for years, but existing products were best suited for rough roof surfaces such as wood roofing and asphalt composition shingles. The shoes provided less traction on smooth roofing products such as metal panels. Steelwalker boots, with magnetic shanks are now available from Cougar Paws, intended for use on steel roofs. The soles should provide increased traction on steel roofing, as well as immediate notification of if the panels are steel.
Speaking of metal roofing, we ran across a novel metal roofing attachment scheme. Stealth Bond (Stealthbond.com) relies on an adhesive to bond 5V metal panels to metal batten strips mechanically fastened to the roof deck, resulting in no exposed fasteners. Several test installations have been made in Florida to date; code approvals are pending.
The roofing industry is dynamic. New products are introduced and products are discontinued for various reasons. These discontinued products still shed water on roofs; sometimes for decades after production was discontinued. Individual replacement of damaged discontinued roofing units can present challenges if the color and/or profile is no produced and reserved stocks are exhausted. However, there are options for custom fabrication of roofing units to match both color and profile. This option can be expensive on a per-unit basis but can be economical when compared to full roof replacement. We chatted with a composite tile producer, Brava Roof Tile (Bravarooftile.com), who has had good results with profile and color matching of discontinued or otherwise unavailable concrete, clay, synthetic, and slate roofing tiles.
Daniel B. Behrens, P.E.
Daniel Behrens graduated from the University of Minnesota with a B.S. in Civil Engineering. He is a Senior Engineer at Haag and is licensed as a Professional Civil Engineer in 13 states. Mr. Behrens is currently a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers and the American Institute of Steel Construction. Mr. Behrens has been with Haag since 2009, and has inspected and assessed damage to hundreds of roofs and structures. His primary areas of consulting are structural evaluations, roofing systems, general civil engineering evaluations, moisture source evaluations, and building envelope evaluations. Mr. Behrens helps develop and present continuing education seminars as an instructor for Haag. See his profile here.