structural elements
Sensible solutions for opening buildings up to the sky
Demand for buildings that offer ‘outdoor’ space has never been higher, especially in inner city environments with tight footprints. Mark Harris, head of technical and operational services at Radmat, explores some fit-for-purpose roofing solutions.
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n response to strong demand from clients, developers are increasingly asking architects to integrate outdoor space within their designs, facilitating the creation of high-profile
spaces such as the publicly accessible ‘Sky Garden’ in the Walkie Talkie building, the stunning public park at Crossrail Place railway terminal in Canary Wharf, and traditional balconied residential apartments such as those in the Chelsea Creek development among many others. Whether an accessible green roof, hard landscaped podium
or an internal balcony these applications all pose the same construction problems: how to waterproof them, how to insulate them, how to meet access regulations, and how to build them with minimal risk from other trade activities.
Whenever a roof is subject to regular access the simplest
solution to all of these challenges is typically to specify an inverted roof construction, also referred to as a protected roof. This is a form of warm roof construction in which the insulation is placed above the waterproof layer with ballast, paving, timber decking or a green roof used to hold the insulation in place. In inverted roof construction the waterproof layer also acts
as a vapour barrier, eliminating the risk of condensation within the roof construction. The insulation has the added benefit of protecting the waterproofed surface from impact damage and the elements. Whether gravel ballast, paving, timber decking or a green roof the upper finish layer further protects
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