Ernie Cecchetto thinks of himself as a conservationist.
The president of Ottawa-based Roof Maintenance Solutions (RMS) has a simple goal: Help commercial building owners and managers extend the life of their roof.
An industry veteran with more than two decades of experience, Cecchetto says he saw a gap between traditional roofing contractors and inspectors. No one, he says, was dedicated to preventative maintenance.
This is particularly problematic for property owners. A leaking roof, in many cases, leads to a full replacement even though in most cases as little as five per cent of the entire system may be deficient.
“We don’t have a vested interest in the early replacement of a roof,” Cecchetto says. “We’re all about the sustainability of current assets.”
One of the company’s strategies is to use a combination of practical and high-tech tools to find and address issues before serious problems occur.
RMS starts most jobs with a magnetic sweep of the roof, collecting construction debris such as nails and metal shards.
“It’s amazing all the things you pick up,” Cecchetto says. “They’re all puncture hazards, especially in winter when there is lots of ice on top.”
Finding the source of a roof leak can be difficult to trace, since moisture can travel considerable distances between the point of entry to where it eventually seeps inside a building.
That’s why RMS also uses specialized meters and electronic leak detection equipment to locate moisture below a roof surface, as well as tiny pinholes that are typically difficult to locate with regular inspections.
In one case involving a light industrial property on Iber Road, RMS was able to locate and repair holes that had eluded six previous traditional roofing inspections, Cecchetto says.
The property was managed by one of RMS’ growing list of clients, which already includes Minto Properties, Carleton University, RioCan and Manulife.
In recognition of the quality work RMS provides these organizations and others, the company was named a Pinnacle Award recipient for customer service earlier this year by BOMA Ottawa.
“Among our core accounts, I have yet to lose a client,” Cecchetto says. “They see the value and never look back.”
Visit http://roofmaintenancesolutions.ca for more information.
