Andrea Wagner Watts is the Building Science Education Manager for GAF | Siplast Building & Roofing Science, engaging with industry professionals to provide guidance, technical support and education for roof and wall assemblies. With more than 15 years of experience in the industry, Andrea strives to improve the overall performance of the building enclosures through application innovation, product development and building science research. Andrea has published on building science, assembly interfaces, durability and resilience and holds multiple patents. She serves as an executive board member of ABAA, is the co-chair of their Technical Committee and chairs the ASTM E06 and D08 Task Groups on air barriers assemblies.
Courses
The data is in! Embodied Carbon & Code Compliance of Your Roof Assembly
Reducing the total carbon footprint of buildings is a frequent goal for designers, and the roof can be a strong contributor to that mission. Imagine if these goals can be achieved using the roof you already specify. It’s not a fantasy. This presentation will dive into the details of how you can take a code compliant roof assembly to the next level. We will share data on how the choice of materials can impact the total carbon footprint of a project, and specifically the embodied carbon. It will also show examples on ways to improve the energy efficiency of a roof assembly and the impact it has on overall building performance across all climate zones. Finally, the presentation will provide attendees with examples of how to use environmental product declarations (EPDs) and energy analysis tools to do similar evaluations for their specific projects.
This session was recorded live on April 24, 2025.
What If? Understanding Roofing 101 Through a Review of Case Studies
With a wide variety of roof systems used on commercial buildings, selecting low-slope roofing assemblies can be complicated. Starting with four unique roofing case studies to review design considerations, we will ask the infamous question “What if?” Attendees will leave this interactive session with a better understanding of best practices in low-slope roof system design, including ways to establish air tightness, reduce moisture intrusion, and lower the overall risk of failure on your next project.
This free course is brought to you through a partnership with GAF. By registering for this course, you grant AIA permission to share your name and email address with GAF.
This session was recorded live on August 22, 2024.
Course expires 8/27/2025