Vancouver and Lower Mainland Commercial Green Roof Systems
Design Roofing offers expert installation combining synthetic and organic green roof materials to achieve an energy efficient, long lasting commercial roof system.
Commercial Roofing in Vancouver and the Lower Mainland is moving into an era of environmentally conscious commercial roofing and construction. Design Roofing is at the forefront of this green roof movement, being Vancouver and the Lower Mainland’s Green Roof System Installation expert.
To achieve a top performing Green Roof System, we create an extension of the existing roof system using waterproofing and drainage systems, filter cloth, lightweight growing mediums and hearty vegetation.
There are public and private benefits to installing a commercial green roof system on your building; we have briefly outlined these benefits below:
Green Roof System Private Economic Benefits
The life span of a roof system will be extended exponentially as the commercial green roof system offers protection from damaging elements such as ultra violet rays and variances in temperature.
Using a commercial green roof system may reduce the amount of necessary
building insulation and the potential to incorporate cooling and/or storm
water treatment functions. A green roof system may also allow you to reduce
or eliminate roof drains.
Commercial green roof systems have proven to decrease community resistance
to new commercial developments and add usable space to a commercial building
portfolio.
Depending on the extent of the commercial green roof system design, there
is potential for an organization to realize regional and/or national market
exposure. The aesthetic appeal of commercial green roof systems increases
the value of the property and the marketability of the building as a whole,
particularly for easily accessible commercial green roofs.
Having the potential improve employee productivity, commercial green roofs will also satisfy the aesthetic needs of those looking down from adjacent buildings.
Interior Comfort
A green roof system with a 12cm substrate layer can reduce sounds of machinery, traffic, or airplanes by up to 40 decibels.
Commercial Food Production
The Fairmont Waterfront Hotel (as mentioned in The News section) in Vancouver used to grow herbs, flowers, and vegetables on its accessible roof, saving its kitchen an estimated $30,000 a year in food purchasing and processing costs.
Green Roof System Public Economic Benefits
Public policies supporting green roof systems will create jobs for the following:
- Suppliers and manufactures of roof membrane and roof repellant materials’
- Suppliers and manufacturers of roofing membranes and root repellent layers
- Suppliers and manufacturers of drainage layers, landscaping cloth, curbs, irrigation systems and other specialty products
- Suppliers and manufacturers of substrate, light-weight soils and amendments
- Garden nurseries specializing in plants specifically for green roofs
- Design and engineering professionals
- Contractors and landscapers
- Companies supplying maintenance contracts
Community Cost savings include:
- Cost savings from storm water retention
- Decreased cost of meeting greenhouse gas reductions and adapting to climate change by reducing the "Urban Heat Island Effect" and the need for interior building insulation
- Decreased need for health care services from reductions in ground level ozone resulting from a reduction in the urban heat island.
- Increased worker productivity and creativity
- Decreased need for health care services and medication due to the benefits of passive experiences with nature and vegetation
- Extending the lifespan of landfill sites by reducing re-roofing material waste
- Opportunities to recycle aggregate and compost
Improved Air Quality
Filtration of Airborne Particles:
- A green roof system will not only absorb heat, decreasing the tendency towards thermal air movement, but will also filter the air moving across it.
- 1 m2 (10.76 ft2) of grass roof has the potential to remove between 0.2 kg of airborne particulates from the air every year.
Source: National Research Council, Institute for Research in Construction
The Fairmont Waterfront Hotel
Commercial LEED Projects:
Design Roofing continues to contribute to a variety of commercial LEED projects.
Click here to discover more on how the LEED program can contribute to your commercial project.