How IMPs offer durability, efficiency, and esthetics

by Katie Daniel | September 13, 2017 4:01 pm

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By Lee Hawkins and Geoff Seale
Insulated metal panels (IMPs) are used across Canada, but have traditionally been most commonly used for cold storage facilities in the food industry—specifically Québec, Ontario, and British Columbia—mainly due to higher populations within these regions. These large product-storage facilities keep food items fresh or frozen for the companies producing them. IMPs help control the buildings’ interior climate, efficiently keeping them at a consistent temperature to adequately store and maintain the perishable contents within.

The building season in Canada is never quite as long as it needs to be for builders. Tilt-up concrete must be poured in temperatures above freezing, and ideally above 10 C (50 F), which limits the building season by four to six months. Stud-frame building can be time-consuming, because of the number of layers used to construct the entire system—the minimum of a vapour barrier, girts, insulation, and cladding are four passes for the builder to meet the required R-value demands.

IMPs offer a quick solution that can be installed virtually year-round. There will be times when it is simply too cold for efficient construction, and high winds pose limiting construction factors. However, IMPs allow a building to be quickly enclosed so other trades can start their work inside a more sheltered space. These advantages have led to the material’s increased use in applications other than simply cold storage facilities.

Manufacturers of IMPs have also expanded their offerings to include more profiles, colours, and textures, providing both architects and building owners with more attractive options. A better esthetic enhances a structure’s appearance, making IMPs a desirable option for many architects designing commercial buildings. These panels are available with a smooth or stucco-like finish, as well as a wide array of profiles and thicknesses to meet R-value requirements. They can also be installed horizontally or vertically for greater design versatility. To accommodate thermal expansion and contraction, IMPs bow between connection points. The panel joint is thermally broken to avoid conduction through the joint.

IMPs for industrial construction
Large production facilities take time to erect, so employing a building method requiring less installation time in turn allows more time to construct more buildings. IMPs have been used for industrial facilities dealing with the mining of oil, potash, gold, diamonds, and uranium, which demand high-quality, long-lasting finishes able to fight the corrosive atmosphere to which they are subjected.

In addition to the energy efficiency benefits of IMPs—mainly the ease with which they achieve desired R-value through the variable thicknesses—these panels also facilitate rapid construction, comparably speaking. Building owners have an ever-present need for production facilities to be erected, enclosed, and operational within a short amount of time. Time is money to end-users, and the sooner the building is constructed, the sooner they can start providing their services.

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IMPs for commercial construction
Commercial buildings offer an excellent opportunity for IMP usage. The wide variety of IMP profiles, coupled with a universal colour palette, provides the building owner with a high degree of customization and building performance at a competitive cost.

IMPs can be used for exterior and interior walls, ceilings, and roofing in both new and retrofit construction. These panels are single-source products, which provide ease of installation as well as a long lifespan—reaching 60 years—not achieved by many other building methods. IMPs are routinely used across many sectors, including retail, sports complexes, automotive, educational, aviation, self-storage, and religious facilities.

New energy codes and testing
The country is divided up into climate zones—the higher number the zone, the lower the average temperature and the higher the R-values required for roofing and walls. Within Zone 7, along the border between Canada and the United States, the requirements are R-27 for walls and R-35 for roofing. Roofing R-value requirements are higher because heat rises, and buildings lose most of their energy through the roof.

Canadian energy codes specify minimum insulation values for various climate zones, and IMPs are an ideal solution to easily meet these increasingly stringent requirements. IMPs with either a polyisocyanurate (polyiso) or rigid polyurethane (PUR) foam system offer the highest insulation value.

IMPs with 100 mm (4 in.) of urethane insulation can meet the wall requirements, and 127-mm (5-in.) IMPs meet the evolving roofing requirements. design professionals are even opting to specify 152-mm (6-in.) IMPs for the roof to improve energy efficiency. Insulated metal panels work effectively in all seasons by keeping interior temperature down on warm days and up on cold days.

Some other building methods, such as stud-frame building, now require a wall anywhere from 203 to 305 mm (8 to 12 in.) thick due to the added batt insulation needed to meet the new R-value requirements. Those extra layers increase the cost of materials as well as labour. IMPs may cost more than stud framing materials, but the associated labour and installation costs are still less. IMPs measuring 16 x 1.07 m (53 x 3.5 ft) can be installed in less than 20 minutes, while it will take considerably longer to install most other wall systems covering the same amount of space. Depending on the desired code and R-value achievement, IMPs are available in 50- to 152-mm (2- to 6-in.) thicknesses. IMPs with 100-mm thicknesses are most commonly used in Canadian construction.

IMP manufacturers have dedicated resources and invested heavily in research, development, and testing to ensure their products meet ASTM, Underwriters’ Laboratories of Canada (ULC), and other required standards, including:

• Factory Mutual (FM) 4880, Class 1 Fire Rating of Insulated Wall, Ceiling, and Roof Panels;
• CAN/ULC S101, Standard Methods of Fire Endurance Tests of Building Construction and Materials;
• CAN/ULC S102, Standard Method of Test for Surface Burning Characteristics of Building Materials and Assemblies; and
• CAN/ULC S126, Standard Method of Test for Fire Spread Under Roof-deck Assemblies.

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Streetscape office building
Streetscape Developments of Saskatoon chose IMPs to achieve its goal of constructing a unique new office building appropriately reflecting the company’s building philosophy.

The shared vision of Streetscape and KSA Group Architecture was to offer spaces with energy efficiency, air quality, and abundant natural light. The facility is ‘solar-ready,’ meaning its roof structure and electrical systems were originally designed to accommodate photovoltaic (PV) panels covering the entire roof.

The second-floor Streetscape offices are expressed in two energy-efficient and contemporary elements: a large white rectangular box holding the exterior staff at one end, and a red rectangle housing the company offices at the other.

Proprietary IMPs were used to ensure the building meets R-value and building code requirements, in three different exterior colours. All panels have a 101-mm urethane core located between a 22-gauge Galvalume 90 exterior panel and a 26-gauge Galvalume 90 interior panel.

A total of 700 m² (7531 sf) of IMPs were installed on the second level of the building: 328 m² (3534 sf) in white, 151 m² (1627 sf) in silver, and 220 m² (2370 sf) in a custom red to match the company logo. Thermo Design Insulation installed the IMPs, and PCL Construction served as the general contractor.

A single-skin metal panel was specified for the lower level of the building. With heavy traffic and snow removal equipment working nearby, it was decided any damaged single-skin panels would be easier to repair or replace than an IMP.

All the office windows are operable, and the building’s exterior design provides many options for exterior signage and street-level entrances.

Conclusion
Like any other building product, insulated metal panels must be installed properly to be effective. Reputable IMP manufacturers will offer installer training and be available to answer questions on any detail during construction. Misapplication of sealants and trim to prevent air, vapour, and water infiltration can turn into larger problems as the building ages, but can be avoided with proper training.

The growth of IMPs is dependent on the architectural community. Architects understand and appreciate the benefits and limitations of the products they specify. While IMPs have been in use for more than 40 years, they were initially considered a solution purely for cold storage facilities. With expanded offerings in product design, innovations, and technology improvements, as well as escalated R-values to meet energy codes, their use is becoming more common in industrial, commercial, and institutional building projects.

Lee Hawkins has been a senior sales manager at Metl-Span for nine years, with jobsite experience in Canada, the United States, Panama, Mexico, and Belize. Before accepting a position at Metl-Span, he served as the vice-president of sales at Zer-O-Loc Enterprises in British Columbia for 18 years. Hawkins can be reached via e-mail at ldhawkin@metlspan.com[4].

Geoff Seale has served as the Western Canada sales and marketing manager for Metl-Span for almost a year. He can be reached via e-mail by contacting geoff.seale@metlspan.com[5].

Source URL: https://www.constructioncanada.net/how-imps-offer-durability-efficiency-and-esthetics/

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