Veteran’s Memorial Auditorium, Des Moines, Iowa
Posted
01/12/2012
Located in Des Moines, Iowa, the
Veteran's Memorial Auditorium honors the
World War II veterans of Polk County. When the auditorium's roof
needed renovation, a long-term solution was proposed. As a result,
Des Moines-based Academy Roofing and Sheet Metal Co. installed a
24-gauge 238T/FiberTite Hybrid roof system in Slate Grey from
Architectural Building Components, Houston.
The 85,000-square-foot facility recently experienced a roof
failure due to a poorly installed single ply membrane so a
renovation and retrofit was needed. There were a number of issues
that made the job a challenge. First the eave height was 70 feet,
the roof pitch was 4:12 and the length of the roof sheets was going
to be 120 feet from the ridge down to a 15-foot-wide trough at the
bottom. The trough was going to be covered with single ply
membrane. On top of that, the underlying structure consisted of a
3-inch-thick gyp plank deck attached to an I beam joist spaced 8
feet on-center.
Terry Wolfe of Force Engineering & Testing, Humble, Texas,
was brought into the project to assist in the development of an
engineered framing plan that provided attachment to the existing
structure while meeting both the wind load and snow load
requirements of the roof. Wolfe designed a framing grid system
consisting of 4-inch-tall by 14- and 16-gauge zee purlins running
up hill and Architectural Building Component's 1 3/4-inch-tall by
16-gauge zee purlins running across that attach to the structure
below. The airspace between the two roofs would be filled with batt
insulation.
Limited access from one side of the building further complicated
the job, so Academy Roofing & Sheet Metal erected a
70-foot-tall scaffold to hold ABC's 238T Archzilla roll former that
ran the 120-foot-long continuous length panels onto the roof.
Panels were run and stacked on one side and then had to be carried
across to the other side of the building. The new 238T roof system
was installed using 100 percent continuous clips. The continuous
clips provided for a wind uplift resistance that was at least three
times the requirements and also significantly increased the load
carrying capacity of the panels. At the eave, the roof panels were
fixed and a flap of FiberTite XT single ply from Seaman Corp.,
Wooster, Ohio, was inserted. Despite the challenges of the job, all
parties worked together seamlessly to provide the best watertight
solution for Polk County.
OPN Architects, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, served as the project
architect and The Weitz Co., Des Moines, served as the general
contractor.
Architectural Building Components,
www.archmetalroof.com
Seaman Corp.,
www.fibertite.com