A mandate for construction of four new residence halls on the campus of Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa, was to use a roof material that offered tremendous longevity. "The board of directors charged us with finding a product that would last 50 years," said Mark Godar, director of facilities management. To meet that objective, the design and construction team utilized approximately 15,000 square feet of pre-weathered blue-gray RHEINZINK® titanium zinc roof and facade panels on the four new buildings.



A mandate for construction of four new residence halls on the campus of Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa, was to use a roof material that offered tremendous longevity. "The board of directors charged us with finding a product that would last 50 years," said Mark Godar, director of facilities management. To meet that objective, the design and construction team utilized approximately 15,000 square feet of pre-weathered blue-gray RHEINZINK® titanium zinc roof and facade panels on the four new buildings.

"Come back in 50 years and we're convinced we'll be as happy then as we are now," Godar said. "We considered a number of material options for the roofs. Frankly, we weren't familiar with Rheinzink. But we did a lot of research and found that it has been used extensively in Europe for years. Rheinzink provided the longevity that we sought. And their director of technical services, Georg Koslowski, made an informative presentation in conjunction with the roofing contractor. The material clearly met our needs, and we couldn't be happier with the outcome."

The Right Choice

The project was roofing contractor Carl Poe's first experience with Rheinzink. According to Poe, the president of Poe Roofing & Sheet Metal, Inc., Montezuma, Iowa, "Other materials were considered, but the architect specified Rheinzink and it was definitely the right choice. The job was complicated since every building had a variety of complex curves combined with vertical facades. One building had a barrel roof with eight flattop dormers. That's a real challenge. The details were critical. The design also included an internal perimeter gutter system."

Rheinzink America provided technical training and certification for Poe's crew prior to beginning the job. Koslowski also attended the first project meeting on-site and was "great to work with," according to Poe. Poe Roofing & Sheet Metal fabricated all panels and sheets at its shop. The long panels were transported to the site on a large, custom-built cradle and raised to the roof via crane or extendable forklift.

The project was designed by William Rawn Associates Architects, Inc., Boston. The new residence halls, all of which are connected by a covered walkway, were imagined as "pearls on a necklace" and define the eastern boundary of the campus. The variety in roof geometry achieves unique roofscapes while melding the natural zinc material and the Iowa sky.

For more information on RHEINZINK, call 617-871-6777 or visit www.rheinzink.com.