TECHNICAL
Why is 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
- Warranty Information
- Emergency Response Plan
- Safety Measures
- Record-Keeping
- Roof Replacement Plan
The myths of underside
roof construction mesh
With new industrial and commercial roof builds it is most common but not compulsory to attach mesh over the purlins of the roof build up during construction. This is as stated in the
health safety guidelines from MBIE.
“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.
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 may be highly improbable due to access.
Has it been installed correctly?
Is it 100% certain the underside roof mesh will work as a fall restraint from something or someone falling through a roof light?
Over a period of time, roof lights degrade with age due to excessive sunlight exposure. Therefore, installing Skymesh safety guard on top of roof lights gives 100% fall protection. Skymesh can be visually checked annually as part of a Roof Management Plan or building warrant of fitness.
Roof light product specifications
Suppliers of roof light sheeting materials for industrial and commercial applications provide multiple variants of profiles and material combinations that are mostly influenced by price. Some of the higher spec products are promoted as being trafficable with underside roof mesh being unnecessary, others add disclaimers that advise against standing or walking on these products. Should this designate them as a hazard that requires a control? Compliance testing for impact resistance on roof light sheeting products is only required to be performed using the AS/NZS 4040.4 -1996 25kg sandbag testing method, a standard that is over twenty-five years old. Skymesh has been tested to the ASNZ 4389 standard using the 160kg drop testing method. This is more in line with NZS1170.1 3.5.1 (b) (ii) (iii) and the design actions of roofing materials.
Are the current standards for impact testing of roof light products sufficient for current health & safety requirements? A question any PCBU should be considering when assessing works to be undertaken on roofs.