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The repair and maintenance of flat roofs probably creates one of the greatest headaches for a property manager as well as giving a touch of migraine to the professionals and advisers concerned with flat roofing problems. It was probably 15 years ago when we all became aware of the failings in design, construction and maintenance of flat roofs erected in the mid‐sixties and early seventies. The Codes of Practice at the time informed us that flat roofs, if designed and constructed in accordance with the Codes, should be maintenance‐free! Unfortunately this was not the case. Flat roofs, even today, still remain unmaintained with maintenance only being considered when failure actually occurs, when something has to be done. This attitude and approach are changing and today property managers are very much more aware of the importance of keeping flat roofs maintained and in a good state of repair. The property manager can also take comfort from the vastly superior materials that are available on the market now as opposed to ten to 15 years ago. This, however, is not an excuse to become complacent about the obligations of maintaining flat roofs, indeed there is no less obligation now than there was ten years ago; the due process of maintenance must be followed. Maintenance of flat roofing should form part of the designers thinking when detailing and specifying a roofing system. Unfortunately, it is not always possible to achieve maintenance input in terms of design and specification. Consequently, maintenance for flat roofing is only considered on completion of the roof and it is at this stage that maintenance policy must be formulated.

April 10, 1967 Building — Safety regulations — Roof — Barrel roof ending in flat roof at either end — Flat roof 20 feet from ground — Workman on duckboard on barrel roof — Workman's fall from roof — Whether flat roof a “working place”— Whether flat roof or duckboard a “gangway”—Whether duckboard “adequate foothold”— Whether duckboard “safe meats of access and egress” — Building (Safety, Health and Welfare) Regulations, 1948 (S. I. 1948, No. 1145), regs. 24(1), 27(2), 31(1) — Construction (General Provisions) Regulations, 1961 (S. I. 1961 No. 1580) reg.7(1).

Various guides, learned papers and trade articles have dealt with roofing maintenance and refurbishment in the past. This brief paper can therefore only act as a general guide to specifiers requiring information on roofing. Further assistance is obtainable from reputable specialist roofing contractors, British Standards, the British Flat Roofing Council, the Flat Roofing Contractors Advisory Board (FRCAB), the Mastic Asphalt Council & Employers Federation (MACEF) and the National Federation of Roofing Contractors. In addition the Tarmac book ‘Flat Roofing — a Guide to Good Practice’ and the PSA Flat Roof Guides are valuable sources of reference.

This paper is predominantly concerned with flat roofs of timber construction with which the author is most familiar. The principles discussed are, however, generally applicable to roofs constructed of other materials.

The environmental performance of several flat roof systems with different materials and insulation thicknesses is compared using life cycle assessment (LCA), with the aim to determine the roofing materials with the highest environmental performance. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

The calculations were carried out for an existing apartment block with a 300 m² flat roof. Five insulation materials with three different heat resistances each, five types of waterproof layers, three covering layers, and a green roof are assessed using LCA. Foreground data including maintenance are obtained from roofing companies, and background data are taken from Ecoinvent. ReCiPe is used as impact method. Energy losses through the roof are calculated using the energy software EPA-W.

Improving the insulation from 2.5 to 5 m²K/W leads to reductions of the damage scores from about 10 to 40 per cent. Polyisocyanurate and expanded polystyrene were found to have the lowest environmental damage, although the differences are small. Regarding the other layers, PVC mechanically fixed, ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) mechanically fixed, EPDM glued and PVC with gravel ballast were found to have the lowest environmental damage of the materials assessed.

The outcomes of this study will aid building owners and construction and maintenance companies to choose renovation options for flat roofs with the lowest impact on the environment.

A smart choice of materials for a roofing system, with enough consideration of other aspects such as practical applicability, can thus significantly improve the environmental performance of the roof of a building.

November 10, 1966 Building — Safety regulations — “Working place” — Flat roof — Workman constructing flat concrete roof — No guard‐rails — Man's fall from roof — Whether roof “working place” — Building (Safety, Health and Welfare) Regulations, 1948 (S.I. 1948, No. 1145), reg.24(1).

In accordance with instructions received through — we have carried out a detailed inspection of the subject property in order to advise you in connection with your proposed purchase of a leasehold interest for an unexpired term of 12 years.

February 20, 1974 Master and Servant — Breach of statutory duty — Mine — Duty to secure safety of working places and obtain all information relevant thereto — Fall of heavy stone from colliery roof injuring miner — Whether breach of duty — Mines and Quarries Act, 1954 (c.70), s.48(1), (2).

Green space increase in dense urban environments is a recurring goal of contemporary planning and policy making. Nonetheless, there is a need to assess the feasibility of concrete greening implementation in specific contexts. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate and discuss the environmental potential of green roofs in commercial neighborhoods with low green rates.

By studying shopping streets in Shimokitazawa, Tokyo, this research focuses on a commercial area featuring narrow streets, mid-rise buildings and a low amount of green space. A 25ha case study area was sampled and investigated from a morphological point of view, based on mappings, aerial photographs and on-site surveys.

Because of the peculiar morphological characteristics of Shimokitazawa, green roofs are a particularly suitable greening option. If all flat roofs in the case study area were retrofitted with green roofs, green space would increase from 4 to 27.7 percent. Moreover, the area’s carbon footprint would decrease by 2.6 percent.

While maintaining that each location has unique characteristics, the quantification of the environmental benefits of green roofs in Shimokitazawa could be generalized for a number of similar areas within Tokyo and Japan, being a reference for policy making and urban design guidelines.