Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/354800
Photo: The California Health Care Facility in Stockton – believed to be the largest insulated metal panel roof installation in North American in 2012 – has about 800,000 square feet of SR2 Standing Seam Roof Panels. Installed by Roland Construction. Photo Credit: Roland Construction & Vicwest About 60 per cent of the company's output in Canada is for the heavy industrial sector, with much of the product going to mining, oil and gas. Oil sands development in the Fort McMurray region is helping to maintain demand, says Dwayne Schaus, director of sales and marketing at Behlen. Westman Steel, a sister outfit in the WGI group, is more focused on the farm, residential and light indus- trial sectors. "It has introduced a range of new profiles of steel cladding and new coatings," Schaus says. Correct installation of components is part of get- ting the best performance and value from today's metal cladding and roofing systems. "As more architectural designs call for insulated met al panels [ IMP] there has been a growing demand for information on installation courses. To answer this need, we're offering a three-day installer certification class in September for qualified erectors and install- ers," says Gail Read, marketing manager at Robertson Building Systems. As emerging economies industrialize and building codes in Canada and the U.S. impose tougher energy efficiency rules, the future looks promising for the IMP sector. "They enable fast enclosure and provide continuous, exterior thermal insulation," Read says. Ivan van Spronsen, the executive VP at the Roof- ing Contractors Association of British Columbia, also sees a positive environment for metal-based systems. "Metal roofing has gained a lot in popularity," he says. The technologies of metal roofing systems have been improving on several fronts. Take fasteners, for example. "Today's metal roof systems have no exposed fasteners. This has sharply reduced leaking potential," says van Spronsen. The esthetics of metal roofs can also be good, he says. "The regular repeating lines of standing seam can make for a strong visual statement." Partly because of the increased use of composite products and the growing complexity of systems that include metal cladding, the Metal Cladding Association of British Columbia ( MCABC) is changing its name to the Architectural Cladding Association of BC. "Part of our mandate was to keep abreast of changes in the industry," says Blake Merrick, co-founder of MCABC and a former director of the association. Now operations manager at the Kelowna office of Flynn Industrial Group, Merrick notes that the related apprenticeship program in B.C. is also undergoing change to reflect what's happening in industry. An IMP system provided roofing for California's largest public works project in 2012. When the state's corrections department built a vast new hospital and health-care complex for prison inmates, an insulated standing seam system from All Weather Insulated Panels (AWIP), a Vicwest company, was selected. Four- inch thick SR2 Standing Seam Roof Panels were used for about 800,000 square feet of roofing, says Peter Macnab, market development manager for Canada at Vicwest. The AWIP IMPs used are rated R-32. To prepare for tougher thermal performance stan- dards expected in the future, the Canadian Sheet Steel Building Institute (CSSBI) has embarked on a project that involves computer modelling of various insulated sheet steel wall and roof assemblies. "We wanted to see how well steel wall and roof assemblies perform cur- rently and then see where we can find further efficien- cies," says Meredith Perez, marketing manager, CSSBI. Fire regulations are also becoming more strict. When the new code was rolled out in Ontario, it included more stringent requirements for cladding and related building products. "Manufacturers and installers now have to prove that they are part of a quality control testing program. They need ongoing certification from a third-party consulting engineer- ing firm that their product continues to meet the required standard," says Travis Conrad, in charge of business development at Ontario Panelization. Previously, a one-time test would suffice, while the new regime can include random inspections. "Few people I've met know about this. It is very recent," Conrad says. ■ 30/ AUGUST 2014 Metal Roofi ng and Cladding Imetco.indd 1 14-07-18 10:25 AM