West Roofing Systems, Inc. Completes "Sky-High Rehab" of Towering Steel Facility

LaGrange, Ohio, March 21, 2017 (Newswire.com) - West Roofing Systems, Inc., often referred to as Cleveland, Ohio’s commercial roofing company of choice for installing high-quality SPF roofing systems, recently added another notch to its professional accolade belt when the organization completed a “sky-high rehab” of a massive, towering steel facility. With the structure stretching 75-feet tall at the highest peak, working on the project presented a vertical challenge for West Roofing Systems specialists, with a “spider web” of structural steel to maneuver around and cold weather adding to the task.

The 1950s-era building, which had not been touched since 2003, was made of galbestos-coated sheet metal and gypsum panels, and though all that was required with regard to surface preparation was power washing – due to the potential of resulting debris from both the wet gypsum and forthcoming spray-applied system falling – the West Roofing crew decided to get creative while protecting the floor.

"Over the nine months that it took to complete the coating portion of the project, the crew averaged seven people, with two of the members up in the lifts manning the spray guns and one on the ground watching the lifts."

Jack L. Moore Jr., President/CEO

“Rather than create a safety hazard with visqueen, we used a nonwoven textile fabric commonly applied during weed prevention in garden beds,” explains Jack L. Moore, Jr., president and CEO of West Roofing Systems. “On this particular project, it protected the floor and stood up to the three-man lifts from JLG, moving around topside; further, to protect themselves, the crew members wore face shields and rain suits during the pressure washing and fully-body harnesses, Tyvek suits, gloves and battery-powered air-purifying respirators by Honeywell during the material application.

“Because of the way we were constantly trying to get in and out of the structural steel, the last thing we needed were more hoses connecting the crew and creating issues; indeed, we were able to be a little more effective in our mobility thanks to the PAPR battery packs. This jobsite also required 100-percent use of hard hats and safety glasses.”

The coating portion of the project took nine months, with West Roofing’s crew averaging seven people, including two of the members being stationed up in the lifts to man the spray guns and one on the ground watching the lifts. Further, the crew generally worked one 10 to 12-hour shift each day, spray-applying the SPF and coatings in a continuous manner and working in “sequences.” Using Graco H-40 reactors with Probler P2 spray guns and number two tips, the West Roofing Systems crew applied Accella Performance Materials’ SPF – referred to as Foamsulate 220 – with the two-pound closed-cell foam applied mostly in two passes to achieve an average thickness of two-inches on the walls and three-inches on the roof deck.

Because other crews were installing furnace lines into 20-feet-deep-by-100-feet-long open trenches during this roofing project, West Roofing had to work around the obstacles when moving lifts about the building. Once set, the crew sprayed the materials, including the intumescent coating from International Fireproofing Technology, and applied approximately 20 dry mils of the intumescent DC 315 using Graco Building pumps with Sullivan air compressors. When the ambient temperature and humidity saw the ideal conditions, the crew was able to apply the coating in one layer. “Regardless of the number of passes, the intumescent offered the right finish for the client – no extra topcoat was required to achieve the desired look,” adds Moore.

In the end, the West Roofing Systems team was able to provide an insulated, code-compliant and aesthetically-pleasing solution – some sprawling 492,664 square-feet in total – for the client. Additionally, the project won the company a first-place spot in the Spray Polyurethane Foam Association’s Commercial Wall Foam category.

“This was a win-win for both the client and the ultra-efficient West Roofing Systems crew,” concludes Moore. 

West Roofing Systems, Inc. was established in 1979 and has installed over 50 million square-feet of commercial and industrial roofing, with universities, hospitals, schools, government buildings and theaters illustrating the variety of architecture experience and projects in its portfolio.

With a satellite location in Tunnel Hill, Georgia, West Roofing Systems’ headquarters are located at 121 Commerce Drive PO Box 505 in LaGrange, Ohio, and can be reached by calling (800) 356-5748. For more information visit www.WestRoofingSystems.com.

Source: West Roofing Systems