More on Roofing Sustainability

Discussions of building  “sustainability” often go directly to those aspects that impact energy efficiency.  While this is one of the most important aspects of sustainable design, there is much more to sustaining the built environment.

Sustainability considerations should include the impacts of products and designs throughout the lifecycle and the entire supply chain.  This means considering such issues as productivity gains, lifecycle cost savings, maintenance, adaptive reuse, destruction and recycling, and overall environmental soundness.

The Duro-Last Cool Zone roofing system gets the green light from start to finish. 

The energy savings are obvious.  Testing by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory shows that the Duro-Last Cool Zone white membrane exhibits a solar reflectance of over 86%.  This means that buildings with a Cool Zone roof will stay cooler, requiring less insulation and a reduced cooling load.  Keeping buildings cooler in urban areas can help minimize the effects of urban heat islands.  Negative impacts from pollution and strained energy supplies are minimized.  Significant lifecycle cost savings can offset and exceed initial installation investments.

Productivity gains are recognized up and down the supply chain due to the efficiencies and opportunities that are captured.  The Cool Zone membrane uses fewer hydrocarbons during manufacturing than many other roofing products.  And with almost 100% recycling of trim and scrap materials generated during fabrication, virtually no processing by-products reach the landfill.  In fact, recycling of process components has spawned another sustainable product produced by the Duro-Last family of companies: vinyl flooring made by Oscoda Plastics, Inc.

Designing for durability and adaptability can maximize the longevity of a building project.  Specifying durable materials and assembling them to prevent premature decay of the structure means more time before eventual destruction and disposal of building wastes.  Designing for ease of maintenance can also increase the life of a building.  The Duro-Last roof system has been successfully installed in applications that have far exceeded 20 years.  This, in addition to the minimal maintenance requirements of a Duro-Last roof, means that the roof system will be an integral part of a sustainable building.

 Minimizing environmental impacts during both installation and removal is also a key criteria for sustainable building design.  The Cool Zone roof system does not require kettles or special spraying equipment that can be messy, emit objectionable fumes or pose fire hazards.   And the pre-design/pre-fabrication characteristics of the system lead to very little material waste by installers, so job sites stay cleaner, and dumpsters and landfills fill up less often.

 The selection of an appropriate roof system is a critical element in the design of sustainable buildings.  Reputable roof system manufacturers should be willing to help in the analysis and selection of the proper system for the job.  Education and training in the basics of roof system selection and sustainable roof design is available from Duro-Last Roofing, Inc.  As a Registered Passport Provider with the AIA Continuing Education System,  Duro-Last Roofing, Inc. provides training that qualifies for AIA Health, Safety, and Welfare credit.  Call Drew Ballensky at 877-556-6700 or see our programs on the AIA Web page at www.aia.org