TECHNICAL
Why is a a Roof Management Plan important
A Roof Management Plan is a comprehensive strategy or document that outlines the management, maintenance, and inspection of a building’s roof. It is typically used by property owners, facility managers, or maintenance teams to ensure the longevity, safety, and Performance of a building’s roof.
A well-structured Roof Management Plan helps property owners and managers proactively maintain their roofs, reducing the risk of unexpected leaks, structural damage, and costly repairs while extending the roof’s lifespan. It also contributes to overall building safety and energy efficiency.
A typical Roof Management Plan may include:
- Roof Inspection Schedule
- Maintenance Procedures
- Budgeting and Financing
The myths of underside
roof construction mesh
“is the preferred system for protecting construction workers against falling through a roof while they are laying roof sheets”
And in the Standard AS/NZ 4389:2015 it states to “support insulation material”
Commentary in the standard says but importantly does not form part of the clause
C3.9 Roof safety mesh is intended to control the risk of fall hazards over the entire roof area, including penetrations, both during construction and after the building enters Service.
There are also a great number of existing roofs that have little or no underside protection.
The questions then becomes
Is it structurally sound?
Do you need to check if it has corroded? What is the age of the wire mesh? What is the atmosphere and environment that it has been exposed to? Under a robust roof management plan underside mesh should be checked annually for signs of degradation. This of course might be highly improbable due to access.
Has it been installed correctly?
Worksafe provides detailed information on the method of installation for safety wire mesh. The mesh needs to be securely connected, overlapped and joined in order to arrest a fall and installed by a competent person.
Is it 100% certain the underside roof mesh will work as fall restraint from something or someone falling through a rooflight.
Most Roof lights degrade with age caused by exposed sunlight over a period of time which is why using Skymesh roof light guard on top of the roof surface as opposed to relying on any underside roof mesh is the only fall protection product guaranteed to comply. Skymesh can be visually checked annually as part of a roof management plan or building warrant of fitness.
Roof light product specifications
Some of the higher spec products are incorrectly promoted as being trafficable, only to add disclaimers that advise against standing or walking on these products. This automatically designates them as a hazard that requires a control.
Compliance testing for impact resistance on hi spec roof light products is performed at a significantly reduced level requiring only 25kg sandbag testing as opposed to the 160kg drop testing method skymesh has achieved.
CONTACT US
Please contact us below if you’re interested in:
- Becoming a certified Skymesh installer
- Have a project that requires an assessment for roof light safety guards
- Advice on roof management or roof safety access equipment