Kinard Junior High School
Colorado's winter weather was the biggest challenge facing Front Range Roofing Systems, LLC of Greeley, CO., in roofing the new state-of-the-art Kinard Junior High School in Fort Collins. The application of the roof during these conditions required the teamwork of everyone involved in the project.
The 91,000-square-foot roof for the new school consisted of 13 different roof areas on five different levels, some of which were not exposed to the sun. Insulated hot luggers were used to keep the asphalt above 400°F to apply the Johns Manville SBS modified bitumen roofing system. Crews mopped asphalt 3 feet in front of the rolls to keep it hot.
"The Front Range Roofing crew did a great job in keeping the asphalt hot and the lines of the rolls straight," said David Michaels, roofing consultant for TechniScan, Inc., the consultants on the project. Michaels explained that cap sheet rolls were cut in half, allowing the rolls to relax, thus making it easier to keep the lines straight and ensuring the inter-ply bond.
The roof system consisted of two layers of 2.5" ENRGY 3® polyisocyanurate insulation that was mechanically attached over the acoustical metal decking. JM ½" Retro-Fit™ Board was mopped in place followed by two plies of GlasPly® Premier felt. A DynaKap® FR fiber glass/polyester mat reinforced, granular SBS modified bitumen cap sheet was set in hot asphalt.
The roofing system has a 20-year No Dollar Limit guarantee. "One of our concerns is life cycle," said Jim Knauer, building maintenance supervisor for Poudre School District. "There will be foot traffic on the roof and we wanted a system, which with proper installation and maintenance, would reach our life cycle goal of 25 years."
Kinard Junior High School was designed using nationally recognized sustainable design guidelines to enhance student performance and attendance; teach principles of sustainable design; harmonize with the natural landscape; provide high-quality lighting; consume less energy; conserve materials and natural resources; and enhance indoor environmental quality.
A key component of the building, which was designed and modeled with an ENERGY STAR® rating of 90, was the use of natural light. The classrooms all use gentle north light balanced with Solatubes® mounted on the roof to bring in natural light. "The curbs that had to be built for the 90 Solatubes were a potential source of leaks," Knauer said. "Front Range Roofing did a professional job of flashing these areas to keep them neat, clean and dry."
The team also designed the roof to prevent water from ponding. For example, they installed diamond-shaped Solatube curbs instead of square ones, allowing water to move past them easily. They also installed large crickets to divert water from drain to drain. To maintain the appearance of the building, site barriers were built from split-faced block to hide the mechanical equipment. This required modification to the wall flashings at the site barriers. The job went very smoothly under the daily supervision of TechniScan and with the technical support from Johns Manville.
"The school district has a philosophy of trying to purchase from Colorado companies," Knauer said. "Johns Manville is a Denver-based company that has provided us with excellent customer service, quality products and timely technical support." Front Range Roofing Systems, LLC has been in business since 1987 and under its current ownership since 2001. The company specializes in the installation of all types of commercial and industrial roofing systems in Colorado and Wyoming. For more than 20 years, TechniScan, Inc. has provided specialized consulting, diagnostic, monitoring and design services to the building and roofing industries. TechniScan acts as the property owner's representative and liaison through its quality-assurance monitoring during construction.
