The official colors of Tyler Junior College in Tyler, Texas, might be black and athletic gold, but when it comes to campus building roofs, the school prefers to see “white and green.” White, for the color of the Sika Sarnafil EnergySmart Roof® membrane, and “green” for the roof’s energy savings and environmental benefits.
“Tyler Junior College is one of the largest junior colleges in the nation, and our new college president, Dr. L. Michael Metke, wanted to make the campus ‘greener’ and shrink our ecological footprint,” explained Kevin Jones, assistant director of Facilities and Construction at Tyler Junior College. “So when we looked to replace some of the failing roofs at the college, we wanted to find a roofing system that was sustainable and good for the environment.”
Jones did some research on the Internet and found one product that would meet this criterion was the Sika Sarnafil roofing system. Unlike the dark-colored modified bitumen, ballasted EPDM, and BUR roofs previously installed on the college buildings, the EnergySmart Roof reflects 83% of the sun’s rays, thereby keeping the building cooler and reducing air conditioning costs. With an emissivity rating of 90%, the small amount of heat that is not reflected is quickly released back to the atmosphere.
“Our administration also liked the fact that the Sika Sarnafil roofing membranes can be recycled at the end of their useful lives,” Jones said. In fact, Sika Sarnafil recently became the first roofing manufacturer to receive UL recycled content certification.
Although Jones was impressed with the environmental benefits of the Sika Sarnafil membrane, he wanted to be sure that the roofing system would also perform well.
“I read that the Sika Sarnafil membrane was used on the new Dallas Cowboys stadium, so I contacted a Sika Sarnafil representative to learn more,” Jones said. “Not only did he give me a tour of the Cowboys stadium but he also showed me a 30-year-old Sika Sarnafil roof at a Southwest Foods warehouse and manufacturing facility here in Tyler — and that roof looked like it was only 10 years old. That’s when we decided to go with the Sika Sarnafil system.”
The Vaughn Library received the first Sika Sarnafil roof at the junior college in 2010, and the Wagstaff Gym was next. The school has been very pleased with their experience with Sika Sarnafil. Subsequently, Sarnafil® roofs were chosen for the campus Information Technology Building, the Genecov Science Building, and for the college’s Hudnall Planetarium.
“We wanted a roofing system that wouldn’t need any attention for a long time, and to date we have never had a single call or issue with any of the Sika Sarnafil roofs,” Jones said. “In fact, our goal is to install Sika Sarnafil roofing systems on all of our flat roofs.”
He added, “Sometimes following a green initiative is not economically feasible, but that’s not the case with the Sika Sarnafil roofs. They have a durable, long-lasting, energy efficient product backed up by a worldwide company.” BD+C
Related Stories
| Sep 21, 2022
Demand for design services accelerates
Demand for design services from U.S. architecture firms grew at an accelerated pace in August, according to a new report today from The American Institute of Architects (AIA).
K-12 Schools | Sep 21, 2022
Architecture that invites everyone to dance
If “diversity” is being invited to the party in education facilities, “inclusivity” is being asked to dance, writes Emily Pierson-Brown, People Culture Manager with Perkins Eastman.
| Sep 20, 2022
NIBS develops implementation plan for digital transformation of built environment
The National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS) says it has developed an implementation and launch plan for a sweeping digital transformation of the built environment.
| Sep 20, 2022
New Long Beach office building reflects Mid-Century Modern garden-style motif
The new Long Beach, Calif., headquarters of Laserfiche, a provider of intelligent content management and business process automation software, was built on a brownfield parcel previously considered undevelopable.
| Sep 19, 2022
New York City construction site inspections, enforcement found ‘inadequate’
A new report by the New York State Comptroller found that New York City construction site inspections and regulation enforcement need improvement.
| Sep 16, 2022
Fairfax County, Va., considers impactful code change to reduce flood risk
Fairfax County, Va., in the Washington, D.C., metro region is considering a major code change to reduce the risk from floods.
Multifamily Housing | Sep 15, 2022
Heat Pumps in Multifamily Projects
RMI's Lacey Tan gives the basics of heat pumps and how they can reduce energy costs and carbon emissions in apartment projects.
| Sep 15, 2022
Monthly construction input prices dip in August
Construction input prices decreased 1.4% in August compared to the previous month, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index data released today.
| Sep 15, 2022
First LEED Platinum, net zero and net zero water synagogue opens
Kol Emeth Center, the world’s first LEED Platinum, net zero and net zero water synagogue, opened recently in Palo Alto, Calif.
| Sep 14, 2022
Fires on Amazon warehouse roofs seemingly caused by faulty PV installations
Amazon has made installing solar panels on rooftops a key part of its ESG strategy, but a series of events last year show how challenging greening up major facilities can be.
