Roofs safe systems

Despite the clear focus on cost reduction, due regard should also be given to product and process safety. For PV to become widely adopted at the Gigawatts (GWp) scale with a large production workforce and components distributed on millions of commercial and domestic roofs, then safe systems must be inherent in future products. Safety must start with the materials, equipment and the process of manufacture, and include the product safety for system installation and, most importantly, any long-term fire and health aspects of unattended PV systems. 

Three examples of safe systems of roof work are given in Appendix 8.4. 

Appendix 8.4 - Examples of safe systems of work used in roof work... 

These systems are typically provided for the protection of atmospheric or low pressure storage tanks. They consist of one or more foam chambers installed on the shell of a tank just below the roof joint. A foam solution pipe is extended from the proportioning source, which is located in a safe location, to a foam aspirating mechanism just upstream of the foam chamber or pourer. A deflector is usually positioned on the inside tank wall at the foam chamber. It is used to deflect the foam against the tank wall and onto the surface of the tank or the tank and shell seal area. 

Longwall systems allow a 60%-100% coal recovery rate when surrounding geology allows their use. Once the coal is ranoved, usually 15% of the section, the roof is allowed to collapse in a safe manner (WCA, 2009). 

Figure 13.8 Conveyor systems (a) belt conveyors (b) a method of safely moving roofing sheets along a roof valley ...

---