Designing Roofs to Withstand Nature's Worst
Key Considerations to Help Your Roof Withstand the Next Big One
Sponsored by Air Barrier Association of America | Presented by Andrea Wagner Watts and Erin Andes, PE
Live Webinar Airing on October 16, 2025 at 01:00 PM ET
As the saying goes, when nature is at its worst, buildings need to be at their best. Roofs at their base level are designed to keep weather out. As weather gets more extreme, roofs are being asked to withstand even more: manage more water, defend against larger hail and stay on during high winds.
During this webinar, you will learn about the new wind requirements in ASCE 2022, best practices for designing for very severe hail, and ways to manage water from large rain events.
Photo courtesy of Getty Images
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Andrea Wagner Watts is the Building Science Education Manager for GAF | Siplast Building & Roofing Science. Over the last 15 years, she has published on building science, assembly interfaces, durability and resilience and holds multiple patents. She is the chair of the Air Barrier Association of America and chairs the ASTM E06 and D08 Task Groups on air barriers assemblies. |
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Erin Andes, PE is the Director of Design Outreach. Erin leads a team of regional building and roofing science professionals that GAF | Siplast has spread across the country. By staying connected to the challenges of the AEC community, she doesn’t just solve technical problems, her team is shaping a stronger future for commercial roofing. Erin is a Professional Engineer in multiple states and holds a Bachelor's degree in Architectural Engineering from California Polytechnic University and a Master’s Degree in Civil Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology. |
The Air Barrier Association of America (ABAA) is a national, not-for-profit trade association comprising a broad cross section of stakeholders in the building enclosure industry. Their membership, which is over 650 member companies, includes manufacturers, architects, engineers, trade contractors, researchers, testing & audit agencies, consultants and building owners. ABAA is the national voice of the air barrier industry and the number one resource for anything to do with air and moisture barriers.
Originally published in Building Enclosure
Originally published in September 2025
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
- Apply the foundational elements of ASCE 7 when determining wind loads acting on a building.
- Recognize the code requirements for edge metal and understand its importance for overall wind resistance.
- Cover best practices for designing a roof to resist very severe hail.
- Evaluate options for managing water from large rain events, including tapered insulation and water retention and detention.
