RTA Rapid Transit Station Case Study

The View: RTA Rapid Transit Station

Corner of Quincy Ave. and E. 105th St.

Residents of Cleveland are familiar with the ornate steel roofs that house numerous rapid stations across the city. RTA is part of the lifeblood of the city, carrying thousands of Clevelanders across the city to work and play every day. When one of those roofs needs to be repaired or replaced, it’s not easy. Working around all those commuters is a challenge in and of itself. But in this case, there were even more complications to overcome. As always, Warren Roofing® was ready to get things moving for RTA.

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The Job:

Install 4 Custom Steel Radius Roofing Panels. This look is becoming iconic throughout the city, and is easily identifiable with the new RTA transit stations. As you’ll see, while they are beautiful and create a modern and sleek look for the stations, they are not always easy to install! The Warren team was up to the challenge, so let’s take a look at how they completed the job to make sure the Rock and Roll City could stay on the move!

The Challenge: The Case of The Invisible Panels

Steel radius roofing panels can be difficult to install. The ornate Garland panels that cover the RTA rapid stations throughout Cleveland are beautiful to look at, but when installing over active commuter tracks, the difficulty level rises a few degrees. What made this project particularly interesting was that the team was literally starting from scratch building a new depot.

This building consists of four different roof levels, each with custom radius panels. So, while the steel structure was in the process of being fabricated, our team was field measuring to allow for Garland to begin their custom fabrication for each roof level. Warren Roofing® was not originally getting the contract for this project, but the project General Contractor quickly discovered they would not succeed unless all their partners were up for the challenge. At the suggestion of the Roof Manufacturer, Garland, Warren Roofing® was called in to get things back on track.

Teamwork Made the Dream Work

Custom jobs like this can’t simply be fabricated from the build documents, as field variations always cause detail to need some adjustment in order to all come together in the end. Working with what information was available at the time, and trying to keep within material lead times and project milestones were the greatest challenges of the project. The General Contractor, Great Lakes Construction, did a wonderful job keeping all the trades working in harmony. Utilizing holiday track shutdowns to do much of the station building work was no small feat. Tim Hollow from Garland also played a major role in keeping things on track, exceeding the expectations of all those involved.

In addition, a complicated work schedule had to be completed during track shutdowns from midnight on Friday to Sunday evenings. During these shutdowns, the project was teaming with life like a beehive; all the contractors working in synchronized coordination.

The Team:

Commercial Roofing Crew

Project Manager: Todd Zilka

The Crew: 8 team members from Warren Roofing®

The Status: Completed over 4 weekend-shutdowns, with multiple Warren crews on-site working around the clock.

The Process:

In this case, Warren Roofing® was not on-site at the onset of the project. After an initial company failed to meet project expectations, our team came in late to the show but stepped up big time to get things back on track. The Warren team worked alongside the other contracts as they began to build the structure that would hold the roof and alongside a team of steelworkers and electricians, all working in unison.

The panels were Garland Steel Radius roofing panels and each of them was cut to a different length for visual impact. Each panel had to be insulated, so the team stayed with Garland products and laid insulation as well as a vapor barrier to eliminate moisture drive concerns.

It wasn’t easy, but the crew planned each weekend’s schedule in accordance with the on-site electricians and steelworkers to ensure that no one was stepping on anyone else’s toes throughout the process. It made for tight quarters, but in the end, everything came together beautifully: the roof was completed, and the job was a success.

The Results:

The residents of East Cleveland have a sparkling new transit station, ready to accommodate their travel itinerary. Warren Roofing® was proud to be able to take part in such an important project.

Not all commercial roofs are flat! If you have a unique shape or material covering your business, let us know and we can help you with your roof install or maintenance! Contact the team at Warren Roofing® today and request a quote from our commercial roofing experts.