Green Architects and Specifiers

Architects strive to achieve a roof design that strikes a delicate balance between aesthetics and performance. Achieving high-performance means incorporating the code, warranty, and guarantee requirements that building owners must meet — among the most important factors of any construction project — into design vision. This isn't made any easier by the sheer number of roofing systems available. Even experienced architects can find it challenging to get familiar with all available components and positively identify which materials are going to deliver the ultimate protection for the building.

Several changes have been included in the 2022 version of ASCE 7 as they relate to the roof. You may be thinking, 'as soon as I mastered ASCE 7-16, an updated version is set to be released!'. As with any Standard, it can be expected that updates will be made to include current research or trends. While the inclusion of tornado loads and the resulting changes in the load combinations may be the most significant, there are other updates that affect roofing as well. From minor updates to basic wind speed maps, to stepped roofs, and pavers, we have compiled a summary to help you navigate the updates. Not to fret, the changes are likely to not be incorporated until the 2024 version of IBC. However, that does not preclude incorporating these changes on current and upcoming projects.

Growing up in the northeast, tornadoes were these random events that occurred in the movies, and far off places like Kansas. But according to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), roughly 1,200 tornadoes occur in the US each year! AND they occur in all 50 states, but primarily in the lower 48 and east of the Rocky Mountains. Given that tornadoes kill more people per year in the U.S. than hurricanes and earthquakes combined, ASCE's Structural Engineering Institute revised the ASCE 7 Standard for Minimum Design Loads and Associated Criteria for Buildings and Other Structures in hopes that it will be adopted into the 2024 International Building Code.

Since its inception a roof's primary purpose has been to shelter its inhabitants from the elements, but now the underutilized potential of roof surfaces is being realized. For roofs with large surface areas, the potential for large overburden installations, such as solar, vegetative roofing, or amenity decks can be exceptional. Even smaller roofs can have overburden that make a significant impact on the sustainability goals of a building including: increased energy efficiency, stormwater retention, energy generation, biohabitat restoration, food production, reduced urban heat island effect, and outdoor space.