Technical Director, Metal Construction Association

Today’s headlines about escalating energy costs and environmental concerns are changing how builders and architects select building materials and how they design for energy performance. Since the roof can be the least energy efficient component of the building envelope, “cool roofing ” has come to the forefront. Builders and architects are now learning how advances in coatings and finishes have qualified metal roofing as a recognized “cool roofing ” product. Reflective or cool roofs can directly save up to 40 % in energy costs by lowering building envelope cooling loads. Cool metal roofing is available with several different treatments, ranging from unpainted metal to oven-baked painted finishes to granular-coated surfaces. Reflected solar energy allows the metal roof surface to remain cooler, which means less heat is transferred into the building and thus less heating load for the HVAC system. Cool metal roofing is one way to mitigate the urban heat island effect. Roofs with higher reflectance have lower surface temperatures, which help reduce ambient air temperatures. This improves air quality since less smog is formed. Also, air pollution associated with burning fossil fuels at utility plants is reduced because of less peak load demand. In addition to being energy efficient, metal roofing is a sustainable building material for several other environmental reasons. As a “green ” building product, metal roofing is rightfully becoming more popular in the architectural community