PHP Roofing Blog

Climate change has become a hot topic over the last few years – it seems to always be in the news – and we’ve heard a lot about how rising temperatures will affect our world. But we’re just now beginning to understand the specific implications for different industries. The roof construction industry, in particular, has some work to do to accommodate a warming planet. That work falls into two categories: risk mitigation and environmental impact.

Most stores put their Halloween decorations out weeks ago, and some have even stocked their Christmas aisles. While that may be a little early for some shoppers, it’s a clear sign that like it or not, winter is on its way. And if you work in facilities management that means you’ve got some roofing maintenance to do.

Sometimes, it seems as if the roofing construction industry is always lagging behind when it comes to adopting new technologies, but don’t tell that to the businesses that are using drones for everything from inspections to job progress documentation to marketing. Here are just a few of the ways drones are catapulting both the roofing construction industry and facility management to the forefront of cutting-edge technology.

Properly installed and maintained rooftop equipment can be a great way to optimize otherwise unusable space – but the “properly installed and maintained” part is critical. Every component – the equipment, the roof supports, and the bases – has to work together the way it’s supposed to. Here’s what you need to know to make your roof supports an asset rather than a liability. 

OSHA has long regulated work done in confined spaces in the interest of minimizing risks to workers. On August 3, 2015, however, new OSHA regulations went into affect that will significantly impact the construction industry. Are you ready for the changes to come?

Inferior rooftop supports can dump even the most expensive, top-of-the-line equipment right onto your roof, but the opposite isn’t necessarily true. There are certain kinds of equipment that don’t belong on your roof no matter how good your rooftop supports are. Here’s a quick list of equipment that shouldn’t be on your roof and an explanation of why each is a bad idea:

It’s trite but true: Accidents happen. Sometimes, no matter how many precautions you take or how well you train your employees on rooftop safety, something goes wrong. Unfortunately, the nature of working on a roof means that many of the resulting injuries are often very serious. A broken water pipe could cause a slip; an electrical short could cause a shock or a burn. And then there’s the dreaded fall, which can be especially scary when it happens from a high distance. 

The time is finally here: roof replacement time. Whether it’s because of postponed maintenance, storm damage or just the natural end of your roof, it’s something all building owners and facilities managers have to deal with eventually. One of the first questions almost everyone asks is, “how much will it cost?” That’s not an easy answer because there are so many different factors involved. Here are some of the most important ones:

When summer temperatures soar, roofing maintenance is not on anyone’s list of fun things to do. But the many factors that can damage a roof don’t take the summer off, so you can’t, either. You do, however, have an obligation to offer your workers as much protection as you can. While there are no specific OSHA regulations that cover heat-related illness, several companies have been cited under the General Duty Clause, which requires employers to provide safe working environments. 

Your roof support system is only as good as the materials used to build it. Since roof supports undergo constant exposure to the elements, protection from corrosion is essential. The process that protects roofing materials from corrosion is called galvanization. There are a few different ways to accomplish it, but the methods do produce somewhat different results. And, when it comes to roof support systems, those differences matter.