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Educational Programs - Concurrent
Sunday, March 18
2:30 PM - 4:00 PM and 4:15 PM- 5:45 PM

Communication Strategies of Expert Witnesses
Thomas Matyas – Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP, Chicago, IL

Communication is an art – and a sport with winners and losers. To win, one must have a strategy. The presenter will discuss the nuances of expert witness communication by telephone, by e-mail, by letter, at inspections, in conferences, during depositions, and most importantly, in court. The full scope of the expert witness process will be addressed, from first contact and the engagement agreement to the due diligence period, the drafting of report(s), deposition, and finally, trial testimony. The speaker will stress the importance of speaking with reference to the past and being mindful of the present while executing a plan for the future.

Thomas Matyas is an attorney who specializes in real estate litigation. He has extensive experience handling complex claims in state and federal trial and appellate courts for matters of equitable and/or monetary relief, including injunctions, specific performance, money judgments, declaratory judgments, evictions, quieting titles, foreclosures, reformation, and rescission. Matyas has litigated matters for retail, office, and apartment buildings; industrial, unimproved, railroad, hospitality, retirement, and health care properties.

Consultant Insurance 201
Byron Spencer – Norman-Spencer, Lombard, IL
Gretchen McAlinden – Norman-Spencer, Lombard, IL

The presenters will give an overview of insurance products most consultants should have in place. Professional liability insurance will be a particular focus. Claims-made coverage, contract requirements, and proper definitions of covered services will be explained. Concepts to be roughly detailed include best practices to help claims, steps to take when a dispute becomes a "demand for payment," the basics of a business package, general liability, additional insured requests, umbrella policies for asset protection, worker's compensation, and, as time allows, employee health insurance coverage. Adequate time will be allowed for Q&A.

E. Byron Spencer has over 35 years of experience in all phases of business and personal insurance, including ten years managing a large commercial carrier's association division. He is a founder and CEO of his firm.

Gretchen McAlinden has over 35 years of varied insurance background. For many years, she was the insurance buyer for a Fortune 300 manufacturing company, handling group benefits for 38,000 employees worldwide. Today, she serves as the president of her firm. In addition to serving the needs of her individual clients, she drives the efforts of her Chicago-based company in development and management of professional liability programs.

What Is Real? Field Monitoring the Wind Performance of Commercial Roofs
A. Baskaran, PhD, PEng – NRC/IRC, Ottawa, ON

Building codes and standards reference wind pressure coefficient data for design of roofing systems. The data are mostly from wind tunnel studies. The roofing community in North America has undergone much change over the last 25 years, including advances in material science, computer-aided design, and engineering applications. Most wind tunnel data were developed over two decades ago and are ill suited to quantify wind-induced loading of current-day roof coverings. As part of the Special Interest Group For Dynamic Evaluation of Roofing Systems (SIGDERS), a project has been initiated at the National Roofing Council (NRC) to collect field performance data from commercial roofs in three locations across North America (Ottawa, ON; Mt Pleasant, SC; and Rialto, CA) The presenter will offer data from the field performance of these roofs and attempt to answer the following questions: How do we quantify the difference in wind loads between rigid versus flexible roofs? | What is the role of roof membrane flexibility on wind loads? | How does one model roof covering flexibility and maintain boundary layer flow in the wind tunnel without introducing the Reynolds number effect? | What is the real effect of wind on roofs?

A. "Bas" Baskaran is a group leader and senior research officer at the National Research Council of Canada, Institute for Research in Construction (NRC/IRC). He has spent 25 years researching the effects of wind on building envelopes through wind-tunnel experiments and computer modeling. Baskaran serves as adjunct professor at the University of Ottawa. He is a member of RCI, ASCE, SPRI, RICOWI, ICBEST, and CIB technical committees. His work in the area of wind engineering and building envelopes has received national and international recognition. Baskaran has an extensive research record with more than 150 publications in peer-reviewed journals and conference proceedings. A professional engineer, Baskaran received his master's degree in engineering and doctorate degree from Concordia University, Montreal, Canada. Both of his graduate research topics focused on the effects of wind on buildings and earned best dissertation awards from the Canadian Society of Civil Engineers.

Roof Warranties – Duration Vs. Coverage: Sustainable?
Brian P. Chamberlain – Carlisle Construction Materials, Carlisle, PA

Brian P. Chamberlain – Carlisle Construction Materials, Carlisle, PA
Customers view warranties as indicators of a roof system's relative life expectancy. While warranty language is intended to clarify coverage limitations, a roof warranty may have little to do with the actual life duration or sustainability of the roofing assembly. What warranty language should be sought to confirm or verify performance? How can a warranty back up sustainability? Should warranties be used as design criteria? The presenter will discuss the merit of warranties compared to a focus on in relationship to materials, performance assemblies, and workmanship.

Brian Chamberlain has been with his firm since 1987. He holds a bachelor's degree in Science of Architectural Design from the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee. He is part of a team responsible for systems configuration, details development, and code-testing operations for those assemblies. Brian Chamberlain has offered numerous design-related presentations in the US, Canada, South Korea, and China.

Educational Programs - Concurrent

Monday, March 19
8:45 AM - 10:15 AM and 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM

Ice Sphere Impact Testing of Photovoltaic Solar Panels
Jim D. Koontz, RRC, PE – Jim D. Koontz & Associates, Inc., Hobbs, NM

The use of alternative renewal energy sources, such as photovoltaic solar panels, is becoming more prevalent worldwide. Substantial investments in this technology are being made by residential and commercial entities. The relative hail resistance of photovoltaic solar panels, however, may not be clearly understood. Several photovoltaic solar panel manufacturers list a hail resistance of up to 1" in diameter, which is not an unexpected meteorological event for most areas of the United States. The speaker conducted impact tests, per ASTM standards, of several photovoltaic solar panels with ice spheres of various diameters.  The solar panels’ electrical output was measured before and after impaction. The effects of ice sphere impact on the performance of the photovoltaic solar panels will be discussed.

Jim Koontz has been involved in the roofing industry for over 50 years. As a researcher, he has authored numerous technical articles on roofing. Koontz has also been a guest speaker for organizations such as NRCA, ASTM, RCI, and others.  As a consulting engineer, he has worked in over 40 states, Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean.  Koontz’s most notable projects include the Kingdome in Seattle, the Denver International Airport, and the Church Street USPO at ground zero in New York after the 9/11 event.

Restoration After Hurricane Ike: Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center
Amy Peevey, RRO, PE, CDT – Building Exterior Solutions, LLC, Houston, TX

The Memorial Hermann Texas Medical Center is a level-one trauma hospital essential for providing emergency care in Houston. On September 13, 2008, Hurricane Ike struck Houston. The center's signature clay roof tiles were damaged, became airborne, and impacted nearby buildings. Exterior glazing and roofing system damage was sustained throughout the center. The presenter's firm was retained as the engineer-of-record to evaluate, make repair recommendations, develop associated repair documents, and perform construction observations for the center's restoration. A major concern with the restoration process was to allow the hospital to remain in operation with little or no disruption. The speaker's firm strived to retain the center's existing aesthetics while providing repair solutions that would prevent future widespread failure and offer long-term repair and/or replacement solutions.

Throughout her career, Amy Peevey has participated in a wide variety of projects involving investigation, evaluation, repair, and construction of structural, architectural, and material-related building problems. She specializes in design peer review, building envelope commissioning, failure investigation, evaluation, repair design, and construction monitoring of building envelope systems. Peevey has been published in an ASTM International (ASTM) special technical publication on inspection of natural stone façades.

Water Testing Misconceptions: Fenestration Product Certification vs. Forensic Investigation of Building Leaks
Brandon S. Buchberg, PE – Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc., Waltham, MA
Francesco J. Spagna, PE – Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc., Waltham, MA

One of the primary goals of a building envelope leak investigation is to trace sources of leaks. National testing standards certify newly installed fenestration products for compliance with specified performance criteria. While these standards can be adapted and used with building envelope leak investigations, water testing for the purpose of tracing leaks should be based on physical evidence, experience, and engineering judgment rather than on guidelines for product certification. Investigators and other professionals often mistakenly apply guidelines for product certification testing during building envelope leak investigations, misunderstand the purpose of accepted test devices (such as the applicable water spray volume), and apply inappropriate test procedures. The speakers will provide an overview of fenestration product certification. Through a study of testing standards and building leak investigations, they will differentiate between test methods appropriate for fenestration product certification and those applicable to building envelope leak investigations.

Francesco Spagna is experienced with building envelope investigations, condition assessments, construction litigation, design of building envelope repairs, construction administration, and peer review of building envelope designs. He has been involved in the investigation and remedial design of curtain walls, windows, roofing, EIFS, and stucco claddings, brick and stone veneer, load-bearing masonry, plaza waterproofing, and below-grade waterproofing. He has a bachelor's degree in architectural (structural) engineering from Pennsylvania State University and a master's degree in civil (structural) engineering from North Carolina State University.

Brandon Buchberg's work involves design, investigation, and repair of building envelopes. He commonly performs water testing to identify leak paths and to verify fenestration performance. Buchberg is a member of ASTM Committee C18 and a member of the Building Enclosure Council of the Boston Society of Architects. He has bachelor's and master's degrees in civil engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Evaluating Directly Bonded Stucco
Lee Cope, PE – Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc., Duluth, GA
John Fraczek, PhD, PE, SE – Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc., Northbrook, IL

The presenters evaluated several coastal high-rise buildings with stucco cladding directly applied to concrete or concrete masonry. Stucco delamination and poor bonding were frequently observed. The speakers discovered several causes, including lax substrate preparation, improper placement of stucco accessories, and poor installation techniques. They will discuss the significance of delaminated stucco and the conditions that affect bonding. Also offered will be an overview of field and laboratory test methods (destructive and nondestructive) that can be used to evaluate conditions and glean quantitative values for understanding bond strength.

Lee Cope is a licensed professional engineer who has extensive experience with portland cement plaster (stucco) façade systems, air barriers, window systems, waterproofing, and interfaces of various envelope components. He has evaluated a variety of structures to determine the causes of distress on exterior façade /curtain wall systems and building envelope systems. Cope is a voting member of ASTM Committee C11 on Gypsum and Related Building Materials and Systems.

John Fraczek is frequently engaged to resolve construction-related design problems; in particular, those related to concrete materials. An established author, he has served as a principal speaker in a nationwide seminar series on concrete repair and restoration. Fraczek has presented numerous lectures on structural failures, repair techniques, materials performance, and nondestructive testing. His professional affiliations include the American Concrete Institute (ACI), the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI), and the Structural Engineers Association of Illinois (SEAOI).

Evaluating Condensation Resistance for the Design of Wall Assemblies
Patrick Roppel, PEng – Morrison Hershfield, Vancouver, BC

The energy efficiency aspirations of regulators necessitate innovation in many aspects of composite wall design. To meet energy standards in mild and cold climates, insulation in both interior and exterior wall cavities is increasingly becoming the norm. Designers' failure to understand the multidimensional nature of construction and how buildings actually operate can unnecessarily restrain the condensation resistance and efficiency of wall systems. This presenter will explore how practitioners can evaluate the condensation resistance of wall assemblies without specialized knowledge of heat-air-moisture computer models.

Patrick Roppel is a building science engineer in his firm's buildings, technology, and energy division. He specializes in the analysis of building envelope performance through mathematical methods. Roppel's research includes predicting indoor moisture levels for uncontrolled humidity, thermal performance of building envelopes, generic solutions for wall assemblies with low air and vapor permeance insulation, and attic ventilation.

Coauthor: Mark Lawton – Morrison Hershfield, Vancouver, BC

Case Study: Uplift Testing of Built-Up Roof Systems Along the South Texas Coast
David Amori, RRC, PE – EFI Global, Inc., San Antonio, TX

The presenter will offer analysis of uplift testing results from a series of adhered built-up roofs installed on buildings near the South Texas coast. The speaker observed a diverse array of failure modes and obvious disconnect between design specifications and stated insurability requirements. The presenter will direct a discussion of the design/construction and insurance process to highlight and provide recommendations for better built-up roof designs that meet insurability guidelines.

David Amori is a structural/geotechnical engineer with more than 19 years of domestic and international experience in building, heavy civil construction, and engineering. He is responsible for forensic engineering, fire investigations, and environmental consulting in South Texas.

Educational Programs - Concurrent

Monday, March 19
2:15 PM - 3:45 PM and 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM

Case Study: Designing a Post-Disaster Building Enclosure for Blast, Hurricane, and Flood Resistance
Chris Norris, PE, LEED AP, CEI – Morrison Hershfield, Atlanta, GA

The presenter will detail the unique challenges and solutions developed for a hospital project in New Orleans. The building enclosure was designed to meet hurricane impact, blast resistance, and flood requirements. The building enclosure materials include pre-cast panels, insulated metal panels, rainscreen walls, membrane roofing, and vegetative roofing. The design was such to allow the building to remain fully operational, even with full flooding of the first floor. To do this, it required an additional layer of building enclosure material to provide an air/vapor barrier between the first and second floors. It also required designed environmental separations for stairwells and elevator shafts. The enclosure is designed to minimize flood damage and allow for easy refurbishment of the ground level following subsidence of flood waters. The design requirements were met through close collaboration among the architect, building enclosure consultant, blast design consultant, structural engineer, and enclosure system manufacturers.

Chris Norris specializes in building enclosure consulting. His experience includes consultation for new construction projects, assessment of existing buildings, and expert consultation in support of litigation. He has been involved with projects throughout North America.

Ice Ball Impact Testing of Siding
Richard F. Herzog, RRC, PE – Haag Engineering Company, Burnsville, MN

Each year, hailstorms cause considerable damage, typically to buildings' siding. Disagreements sometimes arise regarding whether the damage resulted from hailstone impacts, normal weathering, material or manufacturing deficiencies, or other mechanical contact. A laboratory study was conducted to determine the diameter of hailstones necessary to fracture vinyl or dent metal siding of common thicknesses and design. Freezer ice balls of various sizes were propelled at free-fall velocities to simulate hailstone impacts, and the threshold ice-ball size to fracture or dent the various materials was determined.

Richard Herzog is a principal engineer, meteorologist, registered roof consultant, and branch manager for his firm. He is licensed as a professional engineer in 16 states. Herzog has authored or coauthored several articles related to roofing and storm damage issues. He has lectured for organizations including the Roofing Industry Committee on Weather Issues (RICOWI), the Property Loss Research Board (PLRB), Tile Roofing Institute (TRI), trade associations, contractor groups, and insurance companies. He has been the chairman of the RICOWI Hail Committee since 2001, and was lead author on the RICOWI Hail Investigation Project. He has testified in numerous court cases, arbitrations, and appraisal hearings on roofing and building envelope issues.

Coauthors: Scott Morrison, Shawn Patnode, and Jeff Green – Haag Engineering Company, Irving, TX.

Effective Use of Roof Coatings
Gregory R. Doelp, PE – Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc., Waltham, MA
Matthew M. Copeland, PE – Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc., Waltham, MA

Roof coating manufacturers assert the many merits of their products, including protection from ultraviolet rays, reduced thermal cycling, improved waterproofing performance, and, with reflective coatings – reduced energy costs. The presenters will offer a summary of the major coating types available, including acrylics, polyurethanes, and specialty products such as soy-based coatings. The speakers will explain the importance of matching coatings to roofs based on coating characteristics, performance, and maintenance expectations.

Gregory Doelp specializes in investigating and designing roofing, plaza waterproofing, and below-grade waterproofing systems. His projects often include analyzing building moisture problems and leakage problems and repairing/renovating structures. Doelp is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers and several honor societies. He is a registered professional engineer in Massachusetts and seven other states.

Matthew Copeland is a project engineer specializing in historic building investigation and repair projects, with a focus on materials science issues. He has experience with a variety of building envelope issues, including implementation of technologies such as building-integrated photovoltaics and custom terra cotta rain screen systems. Copeland is a registered professional engineer in Massachusetts.

Thermal Storage With PCM Vs. Thermal Insulation in Hot Climates
Christoph Spaeh, PE – Sutton-Kennerly & Associates, Inc., Greensboro, NC

The presenter will discuss how installation of phase change materials (PCM) can provide energy-efficiency improvements for buildings in hot and mild climates. He will detail a comparative analysis of thermal energy flows and interior temperature fluctuations of buildings with increased insulation values and increased thermal storage (PCM), respectively. Data analysis was performed using hygrothermal software WUFI by the Fraunhofer Institute in Germany. The findings show positive results regarding heating and cooling energy demands as well as interior temperature fluctuations. This indicates a need to perform further research to allow such insulation alternatives to be considered in the building energy codes.

Christoph Spaeh has practiced as an engineering consultant in Germany and the United States since 1994. He focuses his practice on building physics issues, including moisture in building enclosures, hygrothermal analysis, energy efficiency, and air barriers. Spaeh holds a master's degree in building physics from the University of Stuttgart in Germany. He is a licensed professional engineer based in North Carolina.

Evaluation of Roofing Renovation Methods Using an Energy-Based Life-Cycle Analysis
Ivan Lee – Morrison Hershfield, Burlington, ON
Steven Murray, PEng, PMP – Morrison Hershfield, Burlington, ON

As one of the most critical parts of the building enclosure, a roofing system has significant impact on both the energy performance and durability of the building. It is widely known that roofs of greater insulation value provide greater energy savings in operational energy.  However, very little consideration is given to the embodied energy of the roofing materials as it relates to the total energy of the assembly. The presenters will discuss how to evaluate the overall energy performance and energy-related life-cycle costs of various conventional roofing replacement options while considering embodied energy cost, operational energy savings, and expected service life of the roof construction.
           

Steve Murray is the director of his firm’s building science groups in Ontario and Alberta. He has been practicing in the building science field for over 20 years and has expertise in envelope rehabilitation, roofing design, and infrared thermography through investigation and repair of dozens of envelope failures. Murray is a past board member of the RCI Ontario Chapter and a winner of the RCI Horowitz award for his paper, “Solving Roof Leaks with Fans.”

Ivan Lee is the sustainable design coordinator for his firm’s Burlington, ON, office.  He has been involved in various sustainable design and LEED projects and durability reviews of building enclosures for both institutional and residential buildings.  He has developed an expertise in energy modeling, hygrothermal analysis, sustainable building materials, and building enclosure design. 

Coauthor: Robin Koke – Morrison Hershfield, Burlington, ON

Roof Anchors for Façade Access – A General Overview
Greggrey G. Cohen, PE – Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc., Waltham, MA

Building façade access is required for window washing, inspection, maintenance, and repairs. Top-down suspended equipment is often the most appropriate access method. For safety reasons, the equipment used for building façade access must be anchored to the building. The presenter will discuss design, installation, inspection, and testing of roof anchors for façade access on existing buildings.

Greggrey Cohen has been with his firm for 23 years. He has designed noteworthy structures such as the University Hospitals of Cleveland; Mather Pavilion; Lerner Tower; LeLacheur Baseball Stadium in Lowell, MA; and the Richmond County Ballpark in Staten Island, NY. Cohen designed the renovations and additions to the Swedish American Hospital in Rockford, IL. He has evaluated many buildings for façade access equipment as part of inspection and repair projects. He has also designed roof anchors for façade access.

Coauthor: Rolf A. Larson – Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc., Waltham, MA.

Auxiliary Seminars - concurrent

Tuesday, March 20
8:00 AM - 2:00 PM

Liquid Sealants: Selection, Design and Installation
Ray Wetherholt, PE, RRC, RWC, REWC, RBEC – Wetherholt and Associates, Inc., Kirkland, WA
Patrick Jorski – BASF
Patrick Gorman – Gorman Moisture Protection, Inc., El Paso, TX
Daniel Cain – The George D. Alan Company, Irving, TX

The presenters will discuss issues related to liquid joint sealant selection, design, and installation. The discussion will include insights from a manufacturer, a designer professional, and two contractors. The manufacturer will discuss the characteristics and uses of different types of sealant materials. The designer will discuss the design criteria and selection process for joint sealants. The contractors will demonstrate installation methods recommended by the Sealant, Waterproofing, and Restoration Institute (SWRInstitute). The session will close with a discussion of common causes of sealant failure and installation training.

Ray Wetherholt is president of his firm. He has been a building envelope consultant for more than 25 years.

Patrick Jorski is a regional sales manager for BASF, where he has worked for more than a decade. For the preceding ten years he worked for a major coatings manufacturer. Jorski has been involved in many facets of sealant installation throughout the central and southwestern United States. His current position puts him in direct, daily contact with design professionals, contractors, and building owners.

Patrick Gorman is lead author of the SWRInstitute’s liquid sealant application training module. He has authored and coauthored several ASTM, ISO, and RILEM research papers concerned with sealant durability and application. Gorman has made presentations annually for the last 35 years on liquid sealant topics in many different venues.

Daniel Cain is a graduate of the California State University at Sacramento with a BS degree in construction engineering management. Working as a specialty contractor in the moisture-protection field, his experience includes thousands of projects throughout the Mid-Atlantic, Central, and Southwest regions of the United States. Cain serves on the board of directors of SWRInstitute. He has written several articles for construction-related publications and given presentations on the subject of moisture protection in buildings for nearly 20 years.

Metal Roofing
Brian Gardner, RRC, CCS – Austech Roof Consultants, Inc., Austin, TX
Charlie Smith – Architectural Building Components, Houston, TX

Long an aesthetically appealing design element, metal has unique properties that separate it from other roof choices. The introduction of corrugated metal roofing in the late 19th century became a welcome economical materials option. Metal roofing has continued to evolve with technological advances in alloys, coatings and the use of "floating" standing-seam roof panels. RCI's Metal Roof educational program provides attendees with a well-rounded look at metal roofing history, properties, design, and installation practices. The program is divided into several sections, covering both traditional and modern metal roofing.

Brian Gardiner has practiced as a full-time roof consultant in Texas for over 27 years. He is past a RCI region IV director (1995-98), acted as document competition committee chair and currently serves RCI as the metal roofing course committee chair. Gardiner has designed, specified, and performed failure analysis on several hundred metal roofs.

Charlie Smith is owner and president his firm, a metal roofing manufacturing company located in Houston, TX. He has helped bring several advancements to the metal roofing industry.