Over the years, the facilities team at the Pool Academy had made their best efforts to remedy the growing number of waterproofing issues across the site with quick-fix repairs. Unfortunately due to substantial leaks and relentless water ingress, many classrooms at the site had been forced to shut, causing continuous disruption to students and staff.
Following a strong track record of successful Condition Improvement Fund (CIF) bids, Garland UK was chosen as the trusted roofing partner to support the Pool Academy’s bid process.
Collaborating with local building surveying firm Cunningham Taylor, Garland UK’s Technical Manager, Justyn Irons, carried out a series of investigative works on-site to provide the essential evidence for the CIF bid, including a comprehensive condition survey of each roof section, core sample testing, U-Value calculations, and photographic evidence.
Following the condition survey, it was clear that the Pool Academy was in need of a complete roof replacement scheme. Cunningham Taylor, with the supporting reports produced by Garland, were successful in their CIF bid, securing over £500K to carry out the much-needed works.
With a total replacement of over 4,000m2, a phased schedule of works across a 2 year period was adopted to reduce the disruption to the Academy and students as much as possible. Working with main contractor TEC Construction and Approved Contractors DFR Roofing, and Stay Dry Roofing, works commenced with the Garland Technical Manager regularly on-site to oversee the installation.
The Pool Academy roof had an existing layer of bitumen felt with mineral wool insulation, which had become the major cause of the water ingress due to the movement in the poorly designed roof system.
A labour-intensive process was soon underway, to remove the mineral wool which had been mechanically fixed to the structure, before installing a full Garland StressPly Flex Warm Roof system with a fully tapered insulation scheme to eradicate the ponding water issues.
The roof also had some failing metal roof sections which were suffering from cut edge corrosion and ingress around the fixing points where the perished seals were allowing water directly into the system. This was overclad, mitigating unnecessary waste to landfill, using Garland’s R-MER CLAD system with the new roof being matched to the school’s original colour scheme.
The Pool Academy was able to greatly benefit from Garland UK’s diverse system, offering both bituminous membrane and metal sheet systems to tackle the failing roofing issues head-on.
Matt Taylor at Cunningham Taylor adds “The detailed condition survey and inspection reports produced by Garland were instrumental in the success of the Academy’s bid to the Condition Improvement Fund. Working collaboratively together across the 2 phases, it has been a real team-effort and we’re delighted with the end results for our client.”
The client was extremely happy with the end results, with money saved in the long-term, zero water ingress and improved insulation levels, creating a much-improved learning environment for the school.