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8 ROOF COATINGS 2016 COATINGSPROMAG.COM a nd com mu n ic ated w it h t he occ upa nt s of t he bu i ld i ng. T h i s m ay requ i re non-t y pic a l work hou rs or s pec i f ic t i mes when work c a n be per for med ," sa id Den n i s K e l le y of R M Luc a s. Keeping workers safe on roof tops shou ld be the number one pr ior it y on a l l coatings and SPF jobs. Accord ing to R ich Trew y n of the Nationa l Roof ing Contractors A ssociation (NRC A), before any work beg ins, a Job Ha zard A na lysis (JH A) shou ld be per for med to deter mine common r isks a long w ith those unique to the jobsite or par ticu lar task being done. " T hese JH A s are a ver y ef fective way of deter mining a potentia l r isk based on the job being per for med, developing an action plan to manage the r isk, and f ina l ly a l low ing for a backup plan if something out of the ord inar y occurs," stated Trew y n. Fa l l protection is the big gest concer n for a contractor when work ing on a roof. Many other safet y concer ns stem f rom keeping an applicator f rom fa l ling. "A har ness and lanyard are used when work is being done w ithin 6 feet [1.8 m] of the edge of the roof. A per imeter line is set up around the edge of the roof as an add itiona l precaution. Fa l ling through sk ylights can be prevented by c learly mark ing a l l sk ylight per imeters and by never coating a sk ylight the same color as the rest of the roof," said Wolfe of RCGA . Slip resistance is a lso a safet y concer n on roof top projects. Dur ing application, a contractor must ta ke care to plan the application so that applicators do not need to track through f reshly laid coating , which can easi ly resu lt in slip and fa l l accidents. With that being said, the person spray ing w i l l be wa l k ing back ward — away f rom the f reshly sprayed area — and w i l l be focused on the applica- tion process rather than the edge of the roof. "It is impor t- ant that the spray ing crew member has somebody watching him or her so [the sprayer doesn't] back into a sk ylight or over an edge," said Nelson of Gaco Wester n. Perhaps most important for coatings contractors is the need to evaluate the safety hazards of each and every job individually. e proper personal protective equipment (PPE) will vary depending on jobsite conditions, the product being installed, and the application equipment used on the roof. e contractor should never make assumptions and should always perform a JHA on each and every job. Many Types of Substrates Just as safety issues may vary from job to job, the type of substrates that roof coating applicators deal with on a day-to- day basis can differ dramatically. Modified bitumen, metal panel, single-ply membrane, concrete, built-up roof (BUR), High-Performance Roof Coatings The contractor needs to examine each roof and choose the right materials, such as added spray polyurethane foam (SPF) insulation, according to Rich Franklin of Oak Ridge Foam and Coating Systems. Accessibility — for the crew and equipment — is addressed first. "If coatings or SPF are spray applied, oftentimes the rig will be left on the ground at a staging area," said Lori Nelson of Gaco Western. In addition to mitigating at-height concerns, the contractor should assess each jobsite for any safety hazards. Personal protective equipment (PPE) will depend on the conditions of the job and the products and equipment used.