Aug 9 2010
Tremco Roofing and Building Maintenance (Tremco Roofing) has taken its latest step as a leading provider of sustainable construction solutions that help create high-performance buildings by acquiring the BioTray™ line from Rana Creek of Carmel Valley, Calif.
BioTray is a natural, biodegradable, modular system for vegetated roofs. The modules are 17” square trays composed of natural latex and coconut coir. Coconut coir is a fibrous, rapidly renewable product derived from coconut husks. Unlike traditional modular systems, the coconut fiber decomposes over time and the BioTray module is converted into growing media (soil). This eliminates the use of plastic in growing and installing vegetated roofs, increasing the sustainability of the roof.
According to Mark Anderson, Program Manager, Sustainable Market Development for Tremco Roofing, “While BioTray systems can be used with young plants, they allow our vegetated roofing system customers to pre-establish plants in an off-site nursery. This enables us to install vegetated roofs that are established from day one. Besides providing plants that are more mature and robust, this process eliminates stress on the plants during installation.
“BioTray also enables our customers to consider a much broader plant palette because the biodegradable nature of the tray allows the root systems to grow into the media layer below the tray. Modules can be placed on top of varying depths of a growing medium to support flexibility of landscape. As the modules decompose, the root mass grows together to create natural wind uplift resistance, while promoting plant health and biological integration.” He added that the BioTray system has proven to work well in sloped applications, in addition to standard flat roof installations, making it an excellent option for unusual roof designs.
Vegetated roofs throughout the country use the BioTray system. Among Tremco Roofing’s installations are the Museum of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff; the Haines Recreation Center in Laredo, Texas; and the Greensburg, Kan., city hall, where the company donated the roof as part of the effort to help the town rebuild as a model of sustainability after being devastated by a tornado. The headquarters of Tremco Incorporated, of which Tremco Roofing is a division, will feature the BioTray system on its vegetated roof, which is part of a high-performance retrofit of the entire building envelope. Tremco plans to use the vegetated roof as part of a rainwater capture and usage strategy. Rainwater will filter through the roof to pipes that will carry it to cisterns, where it will be stored and used for irrigation on the property.
“Adding the biodegradable, modular BioTray system gives Tremco Roofing the most complete array of vegetated roofing solutions available, whether the customer needs an extensive or intensive system, or extensive turf,” said Anderson. “And we will provide a single-source warranty for the entire solution, everything from the waterproofing layer up to and including plant establishment. That’s by far the most inclusive vegetated roofing warranty available.”
Source: http://www.tremcoroofing.com/