The Green Roof Code of Best Practice for the UK 2011

Green roofs have been increasingly heralded as solutions to many of the challenges that face the UK’s built environment in today’s climate. Recent urban regeneration has led to increased population densities in the UK’s major towns and cities and the associated reduction in soft landscaped areas has created design issues that require sustainable solutions.

Green roofs can counter many of these threats, however, a lack of credible independent reference literature that is specific to the design and installation of green roofs in the UK, has surely restricted the number of installations across the country.

Alumasc has been heavily involved, with a number of fellow contributors, in the development of the GRO Green Roof Code of Best Practise for the UK 2011.

The Green Roof Organisation (GRO) as a body is facilitated by the National Federation of Roofing Contractors (NFRC). The code is a clear concise guide that aims to:

1. Provide specifiers and installers with the requisite understanding of the key issues that affect the design, installation and maintenance of high quality, flourishing green roofs for the long-term;

2. Highlight the implications of different green roof specifications;

3. Standardise and clarify the terminology used to describe green roof issues and components through the publication of definitions for key terms;

4. Enable specifiers to comparatively assess the different manufacturers’ systems through the provision of guidance as to the function and relevant performance characteristics of each component within the build-up;

5. Guarantee a minimum quality standard for systems that comply with the requirements of the Code;

6. Promote the benefits of green roofs and highlight how different green roof build-ups can be tailored to prioritise specific objectives;

7. Highlight important health and safety issues that must be observed at the early design stages of a project;

8. Encourage green roof installers to undergo specialist, structured training courses to gain the expertise that will underpin greater numbers of quality green roof installations;

9. Provide for the long-term success of green roof installations by encouraging entry into maintenance contracts with the installing contractor;

10. Provide a foundation upon which further iterative developments can, in time, be based; leading to green roof guidelines that are as comprehensive as any available, including the publication of standard procedures for the characterisation of components and of required performance levels, so as to underpin the continuous improvement of green roofs in the UK.

For more information on Alumasc’s ZinCo green roof systems, click here

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