July 2018

30 31 THE METAL CONSTRUCTION ASSOCIATION less, and its life cycle extends well beyond other, more conven- tional materials. “We have continually improved the product offerings both in shape, and in coating quality, to where the materials are very aesthetically and performance-wise pleasing to an owner. Think about convention centers, major hotels, major venues – they’re almost all metal, these days. The major NFL properties, the Major League Baseball properties use a tremendous amount of visible metal –not just structural, but visible metal.Health institutions, hospitals–there’s a lot of multi-story,metal cladding.We’ve learned how to make materials that are very architecturally pleasing and perform for a long, long time. “Now, if you’re a young or middle-aged person with a house, and you don’t plan on moving in 4.7years,which is the average, but you plan on living there a long time, rather than replacing two or three roofs, buy one roof that cost you 30 or 40 percent more than the first roof. “A couple of years ago,we did a three-year study performed by an independent ISO-approved testing company that inspected and val- idated metal roof systems all over the country that we were able to identify, that were 30 to 40 years old.And they provided us with cer- tified documentation that says metal roofs can last up to 60 years. “If you go to rural Florida, rural Texas, rural anywhere, and you find somebody that has a property with a fairly nice home, odds are, it’s a metal roof.They own the property; they don’t plan on leaving; and they were able to afford to put a little more expensive roof on their place, and know that they don’t have to mess with it in five, ten, fifteen years.And that’s who we’re selling to on the residential side. And all governments are great fans of metal roofing systems–be- cause they own the buildings.” BVM: In closing, are there any other points that you want our readers to know about the MCA? Hielscher: “The Association is a verymember-active organization; the members are involved in the creation, development, distribu- tion, and promotion of our work product and the initiatives that we undertake are directly provided by our membership. These are manufacturers and distributors who roll up their sleeves and get involved.”