Project Details: 
Name: Sandy Valley Schools
Dates: Installed in October, 2008
Location: Magnolia, OH U.S.A.
Project Story:
A FiberTite roofing system by Seaman Corporation protects the new Sandy Valley middle school and high school in Magnolia, Ohio. The first FiberTite project of its kind, the roof on the new Sandy Valley schools is an adhered FiberTite membrane system using applied battens. Designed to imitate a standing seam metal roof, the battens give the roof significant aesthetic appeal, but at a lower cost than a traditional metal system of its kind.
The roof, designed by architects MKC and Associates, based in New Philadelphia, Ohio, was a creative solution to complement a uniquely designed facility. The middle school and high school connect to an elementary school at the same location in a building shaped like a curve. The land housing the schools was originally intended just for the middle school and high school, but the Sandy Valley Local School District added an elementary school to the plan after the site was purchased.
“Given the geometry of the 56-acre site, the most obvious solution would be for one school to sit in front of the other,” commented Jack Pottmeyer, AIA, vice president of MKC and Associates. “But we didn’t feel good about telling one school that they had to step behind and be less important than the other building.”
By curving the building, MKC was able to create a design that connects both schools and allows for the youngest children to enter and exit the building from the far east side where the elementary school is located, and the older kids to do so from the west end for middle school and high school.
“Our intent was to create a nice flow. It keeps things less intimidating, “ said Pottmeyer. “Our philosophy is, the less intimidated students are, the more ready they will be to learn. “
Hicks Industrial Roofing, out of New Philadelphia, Ohio, installed the FiberTite roofing system on the new middle school and high school. A Platinum Level FiberTite Applicator, the contractor has been installing FiberTite for the past 29 years. Despite the contractor’s familiarity with the FiberTite product, the Sandy Valley roof presented new challenges.
“This was our first FiberTite batten project. Our biggest challenge on the job was designing a method for installing the battens,” said Hicks.
MKC designed the roof to be curved too, to complement the design of the building. Hicks added that to the list of challenges.
“To keep the battens in perfect alignment with the radius of the building, we had to trim each roll of FiberTite on site to create a pie-shaped membrane. Then we installed the battens to follow the same pattern.”
According to Hicks, the owner chose FiberTite because it met very specific requirements: the product had to have a proven performance history and be manufactured by a company with a reputation for high-quality products and customer satisfaction.
“FiberTite is a product with a proven track record, which makes it an ideal choice for almost any roof,” commented Hicks. “The look of this roof is exceptional. The district has a building they can be very proud of.”
In fact, the Sandy Valley Local School District was pleased enough to install an additional FiberTite roof, including some sections with batten, on the old high school which was renovated to serve as the new administrative facility.
