MINIMIZING RISK AND OPTIMIZING CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT WITH RAINSCREEN SPECIFICATION

Between the mid-1980s and early 2000s, close to 160,000 multi-family, wood-frame housing units were built in British Columbia, Canada. A confluence of factors resulted in 45% of those housing units experiencing issues with water infiltration and led to the issue being dubbed the “Leaky Condo Crisis.” Lengthy litigation processes and billions of dollars later, the crisis is still not fully resolved.

Failure to mitigate moisture can lead to a host of problems for homeowners, architects, and builders. By understanding the benefits of rainscreens, including new rainscreen technologies like a 3-in-1 water resistive barrier system, as well as best installation practices, specifiers can decrease project time and avoid unnecessary litigation.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• Identify the challenges facing the built environment due to ineffective rainscreen specification.
• Examine the benefits specific to new rainscreen technologies, such as a 3-in-1 water resistive barrier system.
• Analyze best practices for specifying a rainscreen system that enhances the building envelope through drainage, drying, and construction efficiency.
• Explore opportunities where a 3-in-1 water resistive barrier system enables the construction project to decrease the overall project timeline, as well as labor and material costs.