Whenever possible, it’s a best practice to ensure that the installation of fall arrest and tie-back anchors for window washing, suspended maintenance, and fall protection systems are completed in the “new construction” phase. However, often times builders will have a misguided attempt to save the client money on construction costs without considering the potential impacts a retrofit will have down the line. There are several reasons to avoid retrofitting these systems when at all possible:
- it is a lot more expensive
- will require penetrating the roofing assembly and possibly voiding the existing warranty, as well as potentially weakening the roof with the multiple penetrations
- very intrusive and requires a lot of coordination; retrofitting can require gaining access through suites to get onto balconies and terraces
- construction work during occupancy can disrupt the day-to-day operation and enjoyment of the building and tenants’ units
- reinforcing of the structure may be required
- cutting open the ceiling in tenants’ units may be required
Unfortunately, even with all these caveats in mind, buildings requiring retrofitting of anchor systems for many reasons is still a regular occurrence. They may be old, the current system may be deficient, or the building may have never installed a system. In these cases when its decided that a retrofitted system will be installed, some things must be considered.
Challenges of Retrofitting Buildings
How Important Are The Original Drawings?
It’s of the utmost importance that you enact as thorough a search as possible in order to locate the original architectural and structural drawings. This is vital for many reasons – for example, suppose that the window washing system manufacturer has access to the complete sets of drawings. In that case, they may not need as much or even any access to private suites and terraces to install the retrofitting, thus eliminating the need to inconvenience tenants at the design stage. Remember that access will still be required for installation and annual inspections. Note: If this particular building already has anchors, there is a good chance that a drawing of this anchor system is posted at the roof access point.
Roof Warranty
It is of vital importance to check to see if there is an existing warranty in effect on the roof in order to ensure that all warranty terms are properly honoured. If there is a warranty, be sure that the roofer does all the patchwork for the roof anchor system installation; otherwise, the existing warranty may be voided. If there is no warranty, make sure the roof anchor contractor will provide its own roofing contractor. It is also worth considering having your anchor system installed simultaneously as re-roofing.
Suite Access
If the anchor contractor tells you that suite access is required, make sure that tenants are aware of the exact date the site walkthrough will occur. This way, the roof anchor contractor and building supervisor will not encounter any resistance when entering tenants’ units.
Window Washing or Suspended Maintenance?
One of the most important things to understand is what type of system the anchor contractors are proposing. Clarify if you want window washing only or if you can suspend swing stages for facade work, the difference in cost and functionality can be pretty significant. Knowledge is power. Knowing and understanding more will save money and headaches, from getting quotes to supervising the construction of the job.
Ensure Effective Retrofitting of Fall Protection Systems. Contact us to discuss your retrofit needs and how we can streamline the installation process while minimizing disruption.