Over the years, Bigham Taylor professionals have worked above some of the most technologically advanced clean rooms in Silicon Valley and picturesque residential buildings in San Francisco, but almost nothing compares to standing on top of an 800,000 square foot warehouse north of Reno.
“This was the largest project in Bigham Taylor’s history,” points out Steve Yocham, BT’s Vice President, Field Operations and Partner. “Not only in terms of the size of the warehouse itself, but in the planning and strategy and personnel we dedicated to getting it done to meet our client’s needs and the manufacturers specifications.”
The owner of the building called on Bigham Taylor to help solve the dual problems of blow offs and leaks that were happening because of the area’s weather and high winds.
The BT team researched a handful of solutions and consulted with a couple of manufacturers before discovering that a Carlisle system would solve the building’s issues and that the manufacturer was willing to put a 20-year warranty on the roof. “That was one of the things the client required,” Steve explains, “but Carlisle knew they could design a system that it was confident in.”
Before beginning any of the installation work, Bigham Taylor partnered with Nevada OSHA to ensure the rooftop was safe. “We came up with a safety plan that met all the federal and state requirements that included boxing all of the skylights and employing a guardrail system,” Steve says. “So, Nevada OSHA certified the job before we started.”
Once the safety programs were in place, BT roofers began by retrofitting the standing seam metal roof by filling in the spaces with panels of specially cut insulation and blocking at the perimeter that increased the integrity of the edges for the installation of new custom fabricated flashing, which helped secure the roof in high winds.
After that was complete, a high density CertainTeed FlintBoard ISO Roofing Insulation was laid on top of the entire deck before a Carlisle .60 mil TPO single ply membrane with tapered EPS insulation was installed.
Additionally, all of the fasteners, patterns and locations were upgraded on the roof and more than 320 new skylights were installed.
“In the seven months that we were working on the roof we also experienced a wide variety of weather conditions, from rain and snow to high winds and high temperatures,” Steve reports. “So, we had some shut downs, but that’s to be expected on such a large job in that environment.
“We continue to be in constant contact with the building’s owner to ensure the roof is performing as requested,” he continues. “It was a big challenge with lots of little challenges, but it is an amazing project to have our name on.”
