With over 20 years of experience in the unique Ottawa climate, CGSC Systems has the experience and expertise needed to give you confidence in our work - and in your decisions.

Drone inspection provides extraordinary value for decision makers and stakeholders. It provides clear visual information that anyone can understand.

This information can help you, your team and your organization make the best decisions with minimal confusion or ambiguity. It helps you plan your budget, determine when you will see returns on your real estate investment, and make the best decisions when purchasing or selling commercial real-estate.

A commercial roof is more than just the waterproofing layer!

Eastern Ontario has an extreme climate that dramatically increases the stress on roofs and the consequences of leaks. In this part of the world, even minor deficiencies can mean big, expensive problems!

Routine roof inspection and maintenance is of exceptional importance for institutional, commercial, and industrial roof systems.

Commercial building roof systems include some or all of:

- Insulation

- Custom Fabricated Sloped Insulation

- Vapor Barrier

- Gypsum or Cement Board Substrates

Leaks often result in the need for full replacement of these materials, dramatically increasing the cost and environmental impact of water infiltration. This makes proactive leak prevention the most important aspect of routine inspection and proactive maintenance.

Further compounding the issue, the construction of institutional, commercial, and industrial flat roofs can mask water infiltration - even in the case of severe leaks. Metal, concrete and bitumen components often prevent water from infiltrating to the interior, leaving the problem undetected for years.

Because such systems do not permit airflow within them, there are no known reliable ways to dry a roof once it has leaked.

Trapped water expands in high temperatures in the summer, resulting in blistering, bubbles and extensive stress and movement of materials. In the winter, trapped moisture freezes and compresses materials under the weight of snow and ice. This results in pooling and ponding, which further accelerates roof aging.

These issues risk turning into a “death spiral” of roof deterioration - a feedback loop where small problems grow out of control rapidly.

Trapped moisture conducts heat back and forth between the interior and exterior, increasing heating and cooling costs. Wet materials can become moldy, and cause damage to the underlying structure.

For these reasons, roof inspection and maintenance programs are essential for the management of industrial, commercial, and institutional buildings. This is especially true in our challenging climate!

Every year, millions of tons of roofing waste are sent to landfills. Full replacement of roofing systems requires the manufacture, delivery, and installation of new materials. This further adds to the environmental burden of roof replacement.

Modern roofing systems are well suited to life extension and roof overlay options. This opportunity is lost if the existing system is left to deteriorate.

Lightweight materials such as TPO, PVC, white EPDM rubber and liquid applied coatings can be installed over existing roofing and greatly extend the life of the system for a fraction of the cost of replacement.

These materials are usually lightly colored or white. They reflect light, reducing cooling costs and reducing urban heat-island effects.

These economical options avoid waste, reduce the carbon footprint of manufacturing, reduce cooling costs and energy use, and reflect heat to reduce local “heat island” effects. Overlay options can integrate drainage improvements, add insulation and R-Value to the building and provide redundant waterproofing when installed over an intact existing roof.

All of these opportunities are lost if the existing roof system is allowed to deteriorate and the underlying materials to become waterlogged.

Financial

There are many financial benefits to preventative roof maintenance. Proactive maintenance maximizes a roofs’ lifespan and keeps budgets, planning, and capital cost recovery predictable.

There are many economically viable single-ply and liquid coating life extension options which are a fraction of the cost of full replacement.

When considered across multi-decade time scales, proper roof maintenance leading to life extension can save hundreds of thousands of dollars over full replacement.

Tenants and Occupants

Roof leaks disrupt business, damage equipment and cause distress to tenants and occupants.

During repair and replacement, the removal of the existing roofing system results in dramatically increased risk to the property while work is underway. With climate change driving more extreme weather, the risk to tenants, occupants, buildings equipment and infrastructure during roof replacement has never been greater.

Roof maintenance ensures that significant work occurs less frequently and offers tenants and occupants greater peace of mind and fewer disruptions. When it comes time to install new waterproofing, an overlay with new materials will be safer, cleaner, and less disruptive for your building’s occupants.

To Insurers and to Reduce Risk and Liability

While each insurance provider is unique, many are responsive to evidence-based roof inspection and maintenance programs.

Regular roof inspection and maintenance reduces risk to insurers (and owners) due to water infiltration and wind and storm damage. Newer single ply overlay systems can be adhered to the existing roof, eliminating the use of open flame.

These systems do not pose the fire risk that is inherent to built-up modified bitumen roofs or torch-membrane modified bitumen roofs.

Thermal imaging measures the difference in temperature between wet and dry areas at certain times of the day.

Wet areas take longer to warm up in the morning, causing a “cool” signal where water is trapped. In the evening, when the sun starts to set, wet areas retain heat longer than dry areas. This causes a “warm” signal where water is trapped.

If a signal is found, an in-person inspection is recommended to take samples of the roof in areas of concern and confirm the presence of water.

You will receive:

-Mosaic images (hundreds of images stitched together by machine learning algorithms) showing the whole property in stunning clarity. Both in color and thermal.

-A presentation discussing our findings to help you interpret and understand the information. The presentation can be in person, or through teleconferencing and can be recorded.

-A written report discussing our findings and points of interest.

-All raw photos and videos taken during the inspection.

-Any written documentation, labeled or marked-up photos relevant to the inspection and its results.

Drone inspection starts at $1,400 +HST for buildings up to 20,000sf / 6,100 m2. This price includes all licensing, registering of flight plans, establishing safety on-site, all raw images and videos collected, as well as summarized reports and presentations with interpretations of findings.

One on-site follow up to investigate ambiguous signals, or absolutely confirm water infiltration is included.

Additional inspection, such as roof measurement, slope measurement & mapping, composition and material condition assessment can be included at reduced rates.