Tandra Arst, the project manager and the in-house designer on the project, said the architectural firm of Wilson Darnell Mann P.A. Architects of Wichita, who designed the facility, wanted the outside of the building to be a prelude to what one would see inside. As a result, Wilson Darnell Mann designed the roofing system as an inverted parabola, which can be seen from both inside and outside the facility. Goldsmith's is located next to a small airport and the architects knew the roofing system would be visible from the air as well as on the ground.

 

Such a unique design required creative problem solving by the roofing contractor, Charles E. Mahaney Roofing Co. Inc. of Wichita. "The parabola roof was very challenging," said Mike Boyd, presidentof Mahaney Roofing. "It was difficult to find the center of the roof, where it drains, how to manage water flow and, at the same time, maintain an attractive appearance. Not only were we concerned with the appearance of the exterior of the roof, but also with the roof deck that is visible from the inside."

 

Boyd selected a Johns Manville APP torch applied modified bitumen roof for the parabola section of the roof and an SBS modified bitumen roof for the adjoining warehouse. For the parabola, three inches of Johns Manville E'NRG'Y 2™ roof insulation was mechanically fastened. This presented a challenge because the deck runs at a 45-degree angle to the outside edges and was difficult to get all of the fasteners properly attached. A layer of ½ inch Retro-Fit® board was mopped over the E'NRG'Y 2 insulation followed by two plies of GlasPly® Premier fiber glass felt. The APPeX™ 4.5M APP modified bitumen sheet with a white granular surface was then heat welded. According to Boyd, the white surface was used for both energy savings and appearance.

 

The lay-out of this portion of the roof took some time. The sheets on the parabola had to be staggered and yet have the appearance of a smooth surface, even though there were no flat or level spots. The materials had to run perpendicular from the saddle of the roof even though there were two slopes.

 

The SBS roofing system on the flat roof areas over the warehouse was much simpler. The flat roof area consisted of three inches of E'NRG'Y 2 and ½ inch Retro-Fit board but in this instance a single base sheet was used followed by the Dynalastic 250 FR modified bitumen sheet with a white granular surface.

 

According to Robert Jackson, the project manager for the general contractor, Key Construction, another unique aspect of the project is the drainage system. "The design allowed us to drain water from two low corners," Jackson said. "We put scuppers on these corners allowing the water to come off the roof into a specially designed drainage system on the ground. These large concrete circles, filled with supercobble, are part of the design. It's really quite spectacular watching the rain fall from the roof and hit the rocks, turning them multiple colors," he said.

 

Matt Voss, job superintendent for Key Construction said another important consideration for the roofing system was how to keep the roof dry when a large variety of different materials came in contact with the roof. "The roof was attached to a variety of surfaces including corrugated siding and glass panels. We had to be very careful installing the counter flashing and the molding to ensure we kept the water out. We used a two piece counter flashing that had to mesh with the molding," Voss said.

 

In fact the roofing system was so complicated, Mahaney Roofing had three different foremen on the job, each responsible for a different aspect of the roofing system. Britt Morgan, who had been involved in the application of roofing systems to other domed surfaces, was responsible for the heat welded APP system. Steve Storm was responsible for the flat roof and Antonio Pejeda installed the insulation and base plies on the parabola roof. Terry Rotramel, the company foreman was on the job daily.

 

According to John Brewer, one of the architects for the project, the roofing contractor did an excellent job. "Mike Boyd personally took the time to go over the lay-out of the roofing membrane on site in addition to reviewing the drawings in advance," Brewer said. Other architects of Wilson Darnell Mann involved in the project were Michael Cathcart (design and project architects), Dan Wilson (design) and Chip Parker (programming).

 

When asked why he selected Johns Manville as his manufacturing partner on this job, Boyd said, "We wanted one reliable manufacturer that provides all products for the roofing system. Johns Manville makes both SBS and APP modified and that was important. We've worked with Johns Manville products for a long time and have great faith in their performance and we know we will receive excellent technical support. Mike Davis of Johns Manville did a great job," Boyd concluded.

 

Johns Manville, a Berkshire Hathaway company, is a leading manufacturer and marketer of premium-quality building and specialty products. In business since 1858, the Denver-based company has sales in excess of $2 billion and holds leadership positions in all of the key markets that it serves. Johns Manville employs approximately 10,000 people and operates 55 manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe and China. Additional information can be found at www.jm.com.