Thu. May 28th, 2026

NP Builders

Category: Roofing – Commercial & Domestic

The main question for most commercial roofing consumers is, “How long before this roof is going to need repair again?” The simple answer is, this concern depends on which roofing system was installed, the quality of the installation, and the choice to purchase a maintenance contract or to be reactive to a situation, say, a leak.

There are multiple categories of flat roofing products for commercial and industrial buildings. The main roofing components to choose from are: Felt, GRP, EPDM, and PVC. These components fit a variety of building types, roof system sizes, and financial restraints, and also consistently perform differently as they age. These products are consistently treated as more or less interchangeable and the lowest providing a tender, responsive offer, creates adversity to a long term successful system.

Torch-on membranes, bitumen, are consistently misunderstood. Cost vs. performance trade-offs result in a wider variation in the lifespan of roofing systems closed. A standard three-layer system, with a 12 to 15-year lifespan, often is chosen to optimize cost. A high performance system, lifespan topping twenty years, also offers the contractor a value added service. These reflected trade-offs always result in a wider net present value of cost/benefit trade-offs, rarely included in the specification.

For flat commercial roofing projects, EPDM rubber membrane is often the best choice. EPDM rubber has been the dominant flat roofing option for the last 20 years. The rubber performs well despite extreme temperature changes which is especially useful in the East Midlands where extreme temp changes are common. The rubber has large sections which minimizes the number of seams and makes the installation quicker. Seamless rigid surfaces are worth the added cost premium, so our first roof surfaces will be flat and less complex which reduces added costs for manufacturing seamless rigid surfaces. The rubber’s performance will be good even if roofing repairs are required in the near future.

There is an increased demand for PVC and TPO roofing membrane for larger scale commercial projects because of long warranties and reliable data on the performance of these products. Because of the warranty, the PVC and TPO flat roofs are worth the potentially higher costs associated with them for an industrial multi-tenanted commercial building.

Roofing repairs for existing industrial roofs are different compared to the work of a regular industrial roofing installation. The repairs often are less than it would cost to install new roofing. Flat industrial roofs often contain sections of felting that crack around a penetration, sections of GRP that are delaminating, and sections of membrane that are lifting. Choosing to repair or replace a roofing system is a reflection of the design and how long the industrial building will be in use.

This guide addresses the various systems of flat roofs found on both commercial and industrial structures, as well as the repair and maintenance of roofs. These are insights accrued from the trade as opposed to the literature from the manufacturers.

You missed

Timber Cladding

Why Use Custom Timber Cladding

May 15, 2026 admin
Lifting Equipment & Material Handling

Chain Slings for heavy, large and awkward loads

Apr 30, 2026 admin
Lifting Equipment & Material Handling

When Precision Matters: The Real Work of Lifting Load Cells

Apr 23, 2026 admin
Timber Cladding

The Charm of Cedar Cladding

Apr 1, 2026 admin