ST. LOUIS, MO When the Parkway North High School Vikings needed their school's entire roof replaced, they reached out to St. Louis, Missouri, -based commercial roofing expert Bade Roofing Company. 

Partnering with ICS Construction Services, Ltd., Bade Roofing replaced 150,000 square feet of the high school's existing roof with a VersiFlexâ„¢ E KEE HP PVC membrane set in flexible, fast adhesive R20 insulation and coverboard. Installed in a saw-tooth design, the Versico Roofing System was selected based on its aesthetics, thermal performance, weldability and superior cold temperature flexibility.

The school's roof design consisted of several 4:12 sloped areas, which, coupled with the slick PVC material, made slipping and falling a constant hazard on the job. To complicate matters, it rained several days throughout the project.

"Our crews took several precautionary measures on the job, which included utilizing an edge guard rail system and Raptor safety carts to securely tie on to. Workers had to take it upon themselves to use extreme caution while working on the steep slopes and slippery materials. The PVC membrane that was installed can be very slick, especially when wet.  There were definitely a few slips, but other than a few bumps and bruises and slight embarrassment, the project was completed with zero injuries, " said Dave Bade, CEO of Bade Roofing. 

Bade recruited two crews totaling more than 20 workers to work on the project, which required them to work on weekends and long hours to keep the project on track.

"A great deal of effort and resources were needed to hire enough employees required to complete this project," said Bade. "During today's roofing labor crisis, which consists of an aging workforce coupled with not enough young people entering the trade, we were able to recruit enough dedicated workers specifically for this project."