Website by Discover Websites | Site and its contents Copyright © Metrotile 2011. Metrotile UK Ltd: Lightweight Roofing: Unit 3, Sheldon Business Park, Sheldon Corner, Chippenham, Wiltshire, SN14 0RQ Tel: +44 (0) 1249 658514 Registered In England No. 2680324. Registered Office: Unit 3 Sheldon Business Park, Sheldon Corner, Chippenham, Wiltshire, SN14 0RQ. Listed in the YFS business directory in the Lightweight Roofing category. Home Products Features Support News Contact Links Gallery 23rd August 2011 Outstanding Roofs for Outstanding Schools: A Look at Lightweight Steel Roofing Systems on Schools Across the UK It's more apparent now than ever that the UK's new build educational institutions need to be built to last, while the refurbished schools and colleges need to ensure they have decades of post-refurbishment teaching ahead, especially once they decide to invest their capital into the construction work. If the past year has demonstrated anything, it's that annual Government funding has an unpredictable future. The Building Schools for the Future (BSF) program was cut by the then new Coalition Government in May 2010 and a pledge that real time funding will increase over four years during the cuts only added to the uncertainty and confusion instead of reassuring specifiers. When funding is in place and the project is given the go-ahead, school building projects can also be very time sensitive, with works being booked during school holidays to fit around term time. Swift installations are therefore an absolute must, as the end of any school holiday is an unavoidable deadline, which raises the question of how a contractor can ensure a swift installation without compromising both their craft and the quality of materials used and this is as true for the rooftop as any other aspect of the project. Weight is a major factor with any roof installation, so somehow reducing the weight of roofing materials can aid to increase installation speeds during a time- sensitive project such as a school refurbishment. As a solution, many specifiers have decided against 'traditional' roofing materials such as clay or slate and installed a stone-coated lightweight steel roofing system instead, which comes with a number of further benefits. Lightweight steel roofing is a very different material from the corrugated roofs of old. A truly modern material, each profile is pressed from high quality aluzinc- coated steel, while the top side features a stone-based acrylic coating that ensures the steel tile generates no more noise than a 'traditional' roof. Each profile weighs up to an eighth of the traditional counterparts, ensuring significant site transportation reductions, storage requirements and most significantly in this context, a rapid installation. This ensures the rooftop is completed sooner and enables an earlier entry into the project for internal trades. Lightweight steel roofing also excels in another area that is important for modern schools: vandal resistance. As tiles such as slate having a low threshold for projectiles (and can also be easily removed from the rooftop), protection is a must and lightweight steel roofing can withstand projectiles, is extremely difficult to remove from the rooftop (due to a dual-fix crossed nail install method) and is also available in extra strength double-thickness for even more resistance. These benefits lead to the specification of lightweight steel roofing at the newly- formed Priory Federation of Academies, Lincoln, where the Metrotile roofing system was specified.  LSST, Witham and City of Lincoln college were three previously seperate Lincoln institutions that were merged together to form the Priory Federation of Academies, with money invested into the sites via the Building Schools for the Future program. Overseen by Balfour Beatty, the combination of new build and refurbishment projects is both one of the final government Building Schools for the Future programs and the largest single projects Metrotile UK has been involved with so far. Since completion, the various roofs of the Priory Academies feature over 50000 lightweight steel roofing profiles in total. Back to News Page News Back to News Page Tile Profiles The different sites called for different development programs. The Priory Witham Academy was subjected to both a major renovation and new build project that had to run during term time due to the scale of the site. So school life wasn't disrupted, a new building was built on the newly expanded grounds. Once complete, the pupils were moved into the new building, as the old one was demolished and another new building was built in its place. Due to the time constraints imposed by undertaking such a large project during term time Balfour Beatty and roofing contractors Dodds Roofing required a roofing material that offered unmatched durability, yet could be installed rapidly. For Dodds Roofing's Graham Dodds, the solution was obvious; "Dodds Roofing has worked with (Metrotile's) roofing system for many years. It's such a great system as not only is it easy and swift to install, but it also leaves a great all round finish, with very impressive security benefits". Graham Dodds, Managing Director, Dodds Roofing Sister site The Priory LSST (Lincolnshire School of Science and Technology) has a school population of 1700 pupils and also features a Sixth Form College. Rated by Ofsted as 'Outstanding', LSST is an institution synonymous with quality, so any building developments had to reflect this. Like other campuses City of Lincoln College and Witham Academy, LSST was renovated via a two phase development program. Initial buildings were completed by September 2010 featuring 2500 profiles, with the remaining 4000 profiles installed early summer 2011. Once City of Lincoln College has reached completion, there will be approximately 25000m2 of lightweight steel roofing over the Priory Academy sites in total. The Priory Academies demonstrate the benefits of using lightweight steel roofing systems over a large scale project, however the application of the system at Southport College overcame different issues. There were two requirements for the roofing material at Southport - a material suitable for a flat to pitch roof conversion and the ability to use a Photovoltaic system to generate energy for the college using a south-facing slope to their advantage. With this in mind principal contractor Alpha Roofing choose Metrotile lightweight steel roofing to satisfy these requirements, utilising their integrated 10kw Photovoltaic system while also reducing their carbon footprint while saving on energy costs while enjoying the benefits of a low maintenance and long lasting solution. The project specifiers at both Lincoln and Southport found lightweight steel roofing to be the solution to their problematic requirements with excellent results. If you wish to choose the system for your building project, ensure the product's quality by checking the guarantee and that British Board of Agrement (BBA) certificates are readily available and soon you could be experiencing the vast benefits of lightweight steel roofing.