Month: January 2025

Haag Testing Helps Tile Manufacturer Customers Obtain Lower Insurance Premiums

Haag Testing Helps Tile Manufacturer Customers Obtain Lower Insurance Premiums

For over six decades, Haag has been at the forefront of forensic testing and research, including simulated hail impact testing, providing critical insights for product manufacturers, insurance professionals, roof consultants, and engineers. Our specialized testing services provide scientific context for a wide range of engineering challenges – from evaluating how roofing materials perform under severe weather conditions to helping manufacturers achieve certifications that unlock insurance premium discounts for their customers. 

Decades of Expertise in Forensic Testing and Hail Research

Haag has been conducting hail damage research on roofing products since 1963, and our studies have since become industry benchmarks. Our studies have provided valuable information regarding the performance of various roofing products when struck by hailstones.  Decades of field inspection data have been corroborated by laboratory ice ball impact testing, which helped develop industry accepted hail damage threshold sizes for many different roofing materials. Each year, our laboratory performs forensic testing on hundreds of roofing samples to assist Haag engineers, roof consultants, insurance professionals, roofing contractors, and public adjusters with hail damage determinations. Beyond hail research, we have used our wind simulator to test the effects of wind speeds on certain roofing products, providing insights into product performance. 

Innovative Testing Methods

Haag’s forensic testing expertise extends beyond roofing materials. We have performed a variety of tests over the years including:

  • Solar Panels, Skylights and Siding: Tested for hail impact resistance.
  • Insulation: Analyzed thermal properties (R-value).
  • Custom Products: Performance testing on kitchen cabinets and even the insulative properties of dog beds

Our laboratory designs custom testing protocols tailored to each product’s unique needs, ensuring clients receive the most accurate and actionable data.

Meeting Industry Standards for Impact Resistance Certification

One of Haag’s most impactful contributions to manufacturers is our ability to certify products for impact resistance. We test roofing materials to ANSI/FM 4473 – Test Standard for Impact Resistance Testing of Rigid Roofing Materials by Impacting with Freezer Ice Balls. This standard rates materials from Class 1 to Class 4, with Class 4 being the most impact resistant.

In 2021, Haag was asked to help Bartile (a manufacturer of concrete roofing tiles) obtain impact resistance certifications on several of their tile profiles so that purchasers of their roof tiles could obtain discounts on insurance premiums, which are offered by many insurance companies.  The results? All four of their tested products achieved Class 3 or better impact ratings. In 2024, we retested the original four products and two additional tile profiles, expanding their list of certified impact-resistant roofing products.

concrete roofing tiles certified by Haag's Quality Control Program for Class 3 or better impact ratings.
Bartile concrete roofing tiles certified by Haag's Quality Control Program for Class 3 or better impact ratings.
Haag QCP-certified concrete tiles.
Haag QCP-certified concrete tiles.

Comprehensive Testing Services for Product Manufacturers

Haag’s laboratory tests products for roofing manufacturers and others in accordance with published testing standards, including ice ball and steel ball impact test standards and wind testing standards, among others. Manufacturers can achieve an impact class rating and have their products entered into the HRT Quality Control Program (HRT-QCP). Haag is accredited to perform testing that complies with standards from: 

  • ASTM International
  • Factory Mutual (FM)
  • Underwriters Laboratories (UL)
  • Others

Haag also designs and implements custom testing procedures, ensuring manufacturers can achieve their specific goals, whether it’s product development, certification, or performance optimization.  

Haag's ice ball launcher
Haag's ice ball launcher testing Bartile concrete tiles.

Partner with Haag for Product Testing, Certification, or your Forensic Testing needs

Whether you are a roofing manufacturer aiming to achieve impact resistance certification or a product developer in need of custom testing, Haag has the resources and expertise to support your goal. To explore testing options or learn more about the QCP, please contact us or call 214-614-6500.

STEVE SMITH, P.E., DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH & TESTING, PRINCIPAL ENGINEER
 

Steven R. Smith is a Forensic Engineer and Director of Research & Testing with Haag, a Salas O’Brien Company. Mr. Smith is an experienced forensic engineer who began his career with Haag more than 24 years ago. He spent seven years working as a Senior Lab Technician while earning a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering degree from The University of Texas at Arlington. He has been involved with the lab throughout his career, and has been able to leverage his extensive and practical engineering field experience with research and testing projects.

Mr. Smith’s areas of expertise include accident reconstruction, mechanical equipment evaluations, code and standards compliance, roofing system evaluations, and fires and explosions. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in Arkansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, and Wisconsin. He is a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), and Pi Tau Sigma National Honor Society. Prior to joining Haag, Mr. Smith was a Petty Officer Second Class in the United States Navy. He trained at the Navy Nuclear Power Training Command Center in Orlando Florida and was stationed on the USS Arkansas (CGN-41), where he maintained reactor and steam plant chemistry, performed radiological controls, and operated mechanical equipment in the propulsion plant.

 

 

Any opinions expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of Haag or Salas O’Brien.