Today, we take a look at the different commercial roofing systems that are installed on top of flat and low slope buildings across America.
Types of Flat and Low Slope Roof Systems Today
In general, there are currently five basic classifications of commercial roofs that have flat or low slope configurations:
- Built-up roofing
- Metal roofing
- Modified bitumen roofing
- Single-ply roofing
- Spray polyurethane foam (SPF roofing)
In low slope roofs, there are generally three main parts:
- Reinforcement, which adds strength, stability, dimension, and some resistance against wear-and-tear to a roofing system.
- Weatherproofing layers, arguably the most critical part of a roof as it guards against rain or water entering into a roof’s body.
- Surfacing, which protects the other two layers from the outdoor elements and exposure to the sun’s UV rays. As is seen with Conklin roofing systems, some roofing systems’ surface layers have additional benefits.
We cover each type of commercial roof mentioned above below.
Roof Types and Their Features
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The bitumen found in BUR is typically composed of asphalt, coal tar, or cold-applied adhesive. For surface layering, this roof type can include a layer of hot asphalt applied across a building top’s whole surface, aluminum coatings, elastomeric coatings, aggregate “mixtures” (such as gravel or slag), or glass-fiber-surfaced or mineral-surfaced cap sheets.
Metal roofing—Metal roofing is one of the most popular choices for commercial roofing today. There are several metal materials which can be used for metal roofing: corrugated galvanized steel, aggregates of zinc, aluminum, and silicon-coated steel, metal tile sheets, stainless steel, copper, aluminum, stone-coated steel, lead, and tin. Because certain kinds of metal roofs, especially steel roofs, can become rusted from prolonged exposure to the sun, these roof types have surfacing layers applied that protect against or resist damaging influences such as sun exposure.
These surfacing layers are typically coatings, which are applied for resistance against rust, waterproofing, or reflectivity of the sun’s energy. They are typically made of materials such as epoxy, ceramic, or acrylic.
Pros & Cons of Various Roofing Systems
Learn MoreThere are two types of bitumen roof membranes, generally speaking: SBS polymer-modified bitumen membranes and APP polymer-modified bitumen membranes. The SBS modifier is installed in hot asphalt or cold adhesives, while the APP modifier is applied by heat welding or torch application. Of the two, the SBS modified membrane is more common. These membranes’ surfacing layers include: aggregate layers, smooth liquid-applied layers, mineral layers, or metal foil-laminate layers.
Single-ply roofing—Single-ply roofing membranes are factory-made membranes. Generally speaking, there are two kinds of single-ply roofing membranes: thermoplastic membranes, which include PVC and TPO membranes, and thermoset membranes, which include EPDM membranes, a popular rubber roofing system.
Single-ply membranes are able to be fully installed, held down with ballast, or mechanically attached. They do not usually feature roof coatings for surfacing layers. The membranes do, however, often contain reinforcement layers such as polyester fabrics or scrims, glass fiber, or a felt or fleece backing.
SPF roofing—SPF roofing is foam-based and created by mixing and applying a two-part liquid that serves as this roofing system’s base layer. It can easily be applied with different amounts of thickness for greater R-value, or insulation value, or sloping for drainage.
The first part of the two-part liquid is a tight, close-celled spray polyurethane foam insulation, of which the foam is composed of isocyanate and polyol. These are mixed in a one-to-one ratio and then pumped through dual hoses, and then mixed again and applied to the roofing’s substrate. The second part of this liquid formation is the surfacing layer, which provides protection against inclement weather, the sun, and incidences such as fire. This layer can be membranous, but roof coatings are usually applied as this roofing type’s surfacing layer.
In general, the coatings used for SPF roofing surfacing are:
- Aromatic Polyurethane Elastomer
- Aliphatic Polyurethane Elastomer
- Modified Polyurethane Elastomer
- Acrylic
- Butyl Rubber
- Hypalon™
- Silicone
Concluding Thoughts
There are many commercial roofing types available today, but all of them are prone to leaking, undergoing wear-and-tear, having their protection ability compromised, or experiencing other defects. Roofing restoration solutions, such as ones offered by our group of commercial roof contractors, can bring a roof back to its full performance ability and give it longer-lasting durability.
First, before discussing the dynamics of the roofing industry, we need to define the business cycle. Put simply, a business cycle is a reference to a period of time in which ebbs and flows in economic activity – such as production levels – take place within an economy. The period of time in a business cycle can range from several months to several years.
There are some huge business opportunities in the commercial roofing industry. In just 2014, commercial roofing sales are estimated to reach a value of $5.3 billion. But how do you even get commercial roofing projects to start with?
For long-term sustainability, it is obvious that you must keep bringing revenues in to keep your doors open. In this post, we discuss what is involved at this stage of business development, factors to keep in mind, and the advantages offered by our 
Membership in our nationwide contractor network helps you fulfill the following suggestions above with the following:
Naturally, the most powerful way to generate leads and obtain jobs is to get in front of building owners yourself and demonstrate how you offer them value. Nothing beats in-person contact as the best form of marketing, but thanks to new technology, there are now many other techniques available that let you interact with many people at one time.
Today, we discuss the third part of our “
In addition to enabling you to fast-track your roofing knowledge, our group offers you access to highly successful contractors who will coach you on effective sales techniques and additional practical roofing knowledge. Choice Roof Contractors have access to these highly successful industry professionals for the lifetime of their businesses, ensuring they can have any question or concern quickly answered.
This is the most important reason behind why you should use quality materials. 
beginning of 2014 has been a tremendously exciting period for Choice Roof Contractor Group: we are continuing to see greater interest from prospective members across the United States and rapid growth in our membership base. A recent event that our leadership hosted in Middlebury, Indiana, though, offered a glimpse into the gathering momentum that our contractor network is currently undergoing.
the attendees’ reception of the powerful benefits that our network has to offer, along with the inspiring presentations by highly successful commercial roofing business owners within our network, was exceptionally strong.
Mr. Keim commented, “The meeting was a tremendous success, and I can hardly wait to do the next one. It was great talking one-on-one with many of the contractors who attended and seeing their excitement for what we’re doing. Notably, three of the contractors in the area who attended were actually in the commercial roofing industry already and actively using the Conklin roofing systems. They were very impressed by our nationwide platform, and all of them have already begun the membership process.”
commercial roofing sales projected to reach $5.3 billion in 2014 and residential and commercial roofing sales expected to increase to $27.2 billion in 2017, there has never been a better time for starting a roofing business. But it will not be easy to gain a sizable piece of this growing market, as economic conditions remain tight, building owners are trimming down their expenditures, and roofing contractors are becoming more competitive in their bidding.
For 2014, domestic market estimates are positive. According to the building products research firm Principia, U.S. commercial roofing sales will top off at approximately $5.3 billion this year. Around 6.6 million square feet of roofing products estimated to be installed in 2014 will account for those roofing sales.