Liberty Property Trust is a leading developer of domestic and international business properties. In January 2012, North American Roofing installed a new roof on Liberty’s Richmond, Virginia facility, using RhinoBond, a state-of-the-art mechanical attachment system. The Liberty facility was North American Roofing’s largest RhinoBond project to-date, and it went without a major hitch.
ROOF HISTORY
Liberty Property’s existing 141,000 square foot Built-Up Roof (BUR) had outlived its usefulness. Over the years, it developed multiple leaks, which damaged parts of the roof’s structure. The roof was beyond the patching or re-coating stage, the insulation was compromised in spots, and long-term exposure to water resulted in some damage to the roof deck. Liberty wanted a new top-quality roof system with an affordable price tag.
PROJECT SCOPE
Because Liberty’s facility houses business tenants, the company wanted an energy efficient roof that would reduce the costs of heating and cooling the building while giving the tenants a comfortable work environment. During a detailed inspection, North American Roofing determined the need for partial deck replacement in areas where the metal roof deck had rusted through. Areas with only surface rust were singled out for rust remediation. The entire Built-Up Roof system was to be torn off and replaced with high R-value insulation, followed by the installation of a “cool roof.”
RHINOBOND MECHANICAL ATTACHMENT SYSTEM
For the Liberty facility, North American Roofing recommended the RhinoBond mechanical attachment system. RhinoBond, developed by Olympic Manufacturing Group (OMG) of Agawam, Massachusetts, uses up to 50-percent fewer attachments than comparable roofing systems. RhinoBond features induction-welding technology. After attaching the roof’s insulation layer with specially coated plates, the membrane is installed, and a special RhinoBond induction-welding tool is positioned on top of the membrane where it electromagnetically seals the underside of the membrane to the coated plates. The RhinoBond fastening system features a grid pattern, which eliminates mechanical fastening in the seams, and distributes wind uplift resistance load over a larger area of the roof. The denser the grid pattern, the greater the wind resistance factor.
PROJECT TIMELINE
Tear off commenced January 23, 2012, and North American Roofing made provisions for Liberty’s business tenants to continue their day-to-day operations during the project. The entire Built-Up Roof was removed and disposed of. All metal copings, roof edges and guttering were removed. The damaged parts of the metal decking were replaced with new decking. On other areas, superficial rust was removed and the metal was treated with rust inhibitor.
After securing the deck, North American Roofing installed 3.2-inch isocyanurate (ISO) foam board insulation with RhinoBond plates to meet FM 1-90 wind uplift specifications. 60-mil PVC membrane, manufactured by Sika Sarnafil, was installed over the ISO, using the RhinoBond heat-welding tool to seal the membrane. New metal copings, roof edges and new gutters were installed.
During the entire project, which was completed under schedule in less than 60 days, tenant and worker safety was ensured through strict adherence to OSHA regulations.
PROJECT ANALYSIS
Liberty received a new “cool roof” with white reflectivity, beefed-up insulation for optimal energy efficiency and a 20-year warranty. Roofing specialist, Mary Leiter, reinforced North American Roofing’s commitment to the use of cutting-edge technology to offer its customers the best roofing system for their investment dollar. “We’re extremely confident in the RhinoBond system.” Leiter said, “It offers a superior mechanical attachment system at an affordable cost. A true win-win for all parties involved in the project.“