Arena Roof Replacement

July 13, 2024

Construction Type: Alteration (Roof Replacement)
Type of Contract: Lump Sum
Size of Project (SF): 63,024 S.F.
Contract Magnitude: Medium ($500K – $1M)
Duration of Project: 8 Months
Percentage of Self-Performance: 100%

Work Performed

Harbor Roofing was awarded the subcontract for the roof replacement at the CFG Bank Arena in July of 2022 for fellow ABC member Clark Construction Group. Harbor’s scope included the removal of an existing asphalt membrane roofing system and the installation of white GAF TPO membrane roofing, modified roofing at the mechanical pits, and general sheet metal and trim at the perimeter terminations.

Schedule was paramount on this project as Clark had asked for assurances that the roof could be completed by the end of the year in 2022. That would eventually change due to factors outside of Harbor’s control. The owner still had a timeline established to open the venue to the public, beginning with a special event in March of 2023.

The procurement for this project occurred during the post-COVID supply chain issues in the commercial roofing industry, where not only did costs explode but the availability of material – which had expanded from weeks to more than six months – would be the first challenge on this project. Harbor worked with local suppliers to first pre-procure the amount of a special and uncommonly utilized TPO in order to guarantee Clark Construction that Harbor could meet the schedule.

The schedule remained aggressive. Eventually the schedule would extend, but at the beginning of the project, Harbor suggested a strategy that would help accelerate the mechanical, electrical, and plumbing work on the project by performing all roof removal and disposal work at the beginning and using the pre-specified vapor barrier in its approved application as a temporary roof. Harbor would also install a temporary walkway and traffic control to make sure that the temporary roof was not damaged. This was made even more necessary because there was a single point of waste disposal at one end of the building. By phasing the complete removal first and utilizing specialized equipment and motorized carts, Harbor was able to make sure that not only would it meet the schedule, but when the new roofing was installed, it would avoid the staining and contamination that plagues a typical roof replacement.

The base scope of work included two mechanical pits where cooling towers that serviced the building were located. Although initially it was designed to receive a traditional modified bitumen roof, Harbor came up with an inverted roof membrane assembly to complete that roof replacement due to the available termination heights on the mechanical equipment in the pit, saving the owner cost that they would have incurred to raise very heavy and complicated mechanical equipment.

The final piece of work on this project was the amenity section on the lower level. Harbor was asked to replace the roof on this section of the building that was not previously included in its scope. The challenging portion of the lower-level roof was the glass rail paneling that was pre-existing. Harbor had to take extreme care and propose creative flashing solutions at that railing to effectively flash the railing, but also not cause breakage and damage to it.