Major Brands is Missouri’s leading distributor of premium spirits, wine, beer and non-alcoholic beverages. Operating for more than 80 years, the St. Louis warehouse is responsible for $30,000,000 of wholesale inventory.



In 2015, management began the process of accessing options to deal with an expensive problem–a large (300,000 sq. ft.) leaking roof assembly consisting of corrugated transite asbestos panels, wet spray polyurethane foam (SPF) and failed elastomeric coatings. Outside consultants projected the cost of replacement at $5,000,000, a significant expense for any building owner. And, it was determined that new roof coatings would continue to fail due the existing saturated SPF conditions.

Fortunately, the WindSmart Approved Applicator, with the assistance of the manufacturer, developed an innovative solution–install a membrane roofing system without disturbing any of the asbestos. Under this approach, a pressure equalized membrane was successfully attached at the perimeter walls through the use of a spring flange terminations. This proven method of installing single ply roofs allowed the contractor to loose lay the membrane without installing any fasteners through the existing roof or asbestos materials. The manufacturer provided a guarantee to dry out the saturated SPF through an engineered process of low pressure controlled air exchange.

The final step towards implementation was achieved by gaining approval from the building owner’s insurance provider–Factory Mutual. The WindSmart Approved Applicator’s pressure equalized solution provided the owner with a high-quality roof assembly at a cost savings of over $3,500,000.

The new roof assembly was designed and installed to achieve:

• Code compliance with wind uplift resistance engineered to ASCE standards
• Continual moisture mitigation through a process of controlled air exchange
• A high level of environmental stewardship which avoided roof “tear off”, thus allowing the encapsulation of the existing asbestos transite materials
• The potential to expense the project’s cost in one year vs. capitalization or depreciation over many years

Location:

St. Louis, MO

Owner:

Major Brands – Premium Beverage Distributors (DBV Holdings)

Roofing Contractor:

WindSmart Approved Applicator

Square Footage:

300,000+ sq. ft.

Materials:

60-Mil EPDM

Year Completed:

2016