Deceptive Code Amendment Defeated
(Room Champagne 1)
12 Jun 19
1:15 PM
-
2:30 PM
Tracks:
Codes, Industry Issues, Product Demonstration
There’s a good chance many IIBEC members have experience with code hearings where you’ve left frustrated. So have I. Recently, a diverse group of concerned organizations in Oregon rose to defeat a proposed code amendment that would have only benefited a few roofing manufacturers. It’s amazing how much you learn when you go on a quest for facts about the issue at hand. In our case, a group of manufacturers, working through the Global Cool Cities Alliance, applied to the State of Oregon Building Codes Agency to make cool roofs mandatory on air-conditioned buildings in Western Oregon. This group of manufacturers sponsored an alliance to promote the growth of cool roof sales under the guise of energy and environmental benefits that would result in roofs that would pay for themselves. Unfortunately for them, the out-of-town alliance didn’t make it out to Oregon to do any research to back up their claims. What worked in our opposition of this proposed amendment was the diversity and breadth of participants. We had taxpayers (thanks to encouragement from BOMA); a spokesman from OCSA (The Oregon Confederation of School Administrators) who spoke on behalf of school associations for business managers, facilities managers and school board members; National, Western, and Portland Roofers Associations; two multiproduct roofing manufacturers; and the Portland Chapter of the IIBEC all assembled to fight the change. After this team was organized, we were fine-tuned by Ellen Thorp of the ERA and Mike Fischer of ARMA. We were able to fight poorly implemented computer simulations with in-field experience and speculation with facts. The result was multiple advocate groups working for the benefit of all – an exciting concept and a model for future situations which can empower the roofing industry as a whole.