Portland Public Schools Roof Management

OBJECTIVE / BACKGROUND

Portland Public Schools is one of the largest public school districts in the Pacific Northwest and owns and operates over 100 properties that includes school buildings, charter schools, special services facilities, and administrative buildings. Since 2001, Portland Public Schools has retained Professional Roof Consultants, Inc. to perform detailed roof assessments and management on properties included in its inventory. To date, PRC has surveyed over half of the district’s assets which equates to over 1,100 separate roof areas that cover over 4.8 million square feet.

STRATEGIES & SERVICES

Using PRC’s RoofPro data-based software, PRC personnel input data into Roof Evaluation forms and have customized the software’s output to meet the criteria and needs of the district, especially as it relates to master planning and generation of recommended scopes of work for future projects. As with all roof management programs that are performed by the company, the process starts with a thorough review of past documentation, including review of as-built drawings, historic project data, and applicable warranty information. This process establishes a baseline for data collection, with the balance occurring during on-site field assessments, including, but not limited to core sampling and material analysis, moisture testing where necessary, and documentation of existing conditions as it relates to general construction, insulation, drainage, flashings, and other related criteria.

For each year that assessments are performed for Portland Public Schools, PRC provides reporting that results in an accurate inventory of existing conditions, production of accurate roof plans, determination of design criteria, and recommended scopes of work and associated budgetary cost estimates for those scopes. The process assists with determining future planning and budgeting for capital improvement and school modernization projects.

OUTCOMES

PPS recently commissioned PRC with the assessment of roof systems that cover every district owned and operated property, which equates to the balance of buildings that have yet to be included in the assessment, and an update for buildings that have already been included within earlier assessments. The project will conclude in 2024 and will provide the district with a full accounting of every roof system it owns and will assist in providing valuable master planning information as it relates to prioritizing and bond planning in the future. In addition to master planning, information provided by each successive assessment report is also used to maximize the service life of existing roofs through implementation of timely maintenance and repairs.