With the August issue of Roofing Contractorfeaturing the top contractors, it’s a great time to also bring attention to the top sustainable contractors for the year. Perhaps the best resource to identify the contractors who have exhibited real leadership in sustainable roofing is the Excellence in Design Award. This award was established in 2003 to recognize the best in long-lasting, energy efficient, environmentally friendly roof systems, and since 2008 it has been administered by the Center for Environmental Innovation in Roofing. Starting in 2011, the award was re-named the RoofPoint Excellence in Design Award, and all projects considered for recognition also obtained RoofPoint certification as a prerequisite for eligibility.

Last year the Center evaluated dozens of RoofPoint projects submitted by roofing contractors, roof consultants and roofing manufacturers. The competition was intense, but the following contractors came out on top as recipients of this prestigious award:

• D. C. Taylor Company (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) received the RoofPoint Excellence in Energy Management for sustainable roof restoration at Meridian Vineyards, Paso Robles, Calif. This project features near-100 percent recycling and restoration of a 20 plus year-old metal roof that will provide an additional 20 plus years of useful service with minimal additional environmental impact.

• DRI Companies(Irvine, Calif.) received the RoofPoint Excellence in Energy Management Award for the High Desert Government Center in Hesperia, Calif. This project features a unique combination of high-R insulation, cool roofing and roof shading to minimize energy costs, as well as an extensive rooftop PV system providing more than 70 percent of the building’s power requirements.

• GSM Roofing(Ephrata, Pa.) received the RoofPoint Community Leadership Award for completing nine RoofPoint projects in 2011, including a large re-roof for Hershey Foods in West Hershey, Pa. The Hershey project includes the installation of roof insulation that exceeds current green building standards for energy efficiency and enhanced membrane thickness that will improve overall roof system durability and increase resistance to maintenance traffic.

• J. P. Patti Tecta America(Saddle Brook, N.J.) received the RoofPoint Excellence in Water Management Award for the USPS Morgan Processing and Distribution Center in New York City. This re-roofing project installed by an operating unit of Tecta America (Rosemont, Ill.) features a comprehensive approach to sustainable urban roofing. Using a combination of extensive vegetation and highly reflective roof pavers, the roof reduces annual storm water discharge by over 50 percent and helps reduce energy consumption in the winter while mitigating the heat island effects in the summer.

Other prominent roofing contractors receiving honorable mention for 2011 included Douglass Colony Group (Commerce City, Colo.), Kalkreuth Roofing and Sheet Metal (Wheeling, W.Va.), Prospect Waterproofing (Sterling, Va.), Schwickerts Tecta America (Mankato, Minn.), Tecta America Southeast (Sanford, Fla.), and United Materials (Denver, Colo.).

 We hope even more contractors will submit projects for this award in 2012, starting with submissions of projects for RoofPoint certification. If you would like to participate in the RoofPoint Excellence in Design Award competition for 2012, please go to the RoofPoint website (www.roofpoint.org) and click the Excellence in Design Award Application tab.