S-5!, the leading authority on metal roof attachment solutions, will introduce its new GripperFix technology next month at the International Roofing Expo (IRE) in Dallas. Additionally, S-5!’s Founder and CEO will present the fundamentals of Understanding Metal Roofing: Part I and II, providing the opportunity for attendees to earn continuing education credits.

Attendees are invited to stop by S-5! Booth #2622 to see first-hand its new universal GripperFix system, which makes mounting almost anything on standing seam and exposed-fastener roof profiles simple and easy.

Traditionally, mounting rooftop ancillary items using concrete blocks for ballast damages a roof and provides a temporary fix. S-5!’s new GripperFix technology ensures a secure and dependable attachment solution that preserves the integrity of the roof and avoids destructive corrosion. This system is quick and simple to install, lasts the life of the roof, maintains roof warranties and is less expensive than other mounting methods. S-5!’s team including Rob Haddock, Founder and CEO of S-5!, will be on-hand to explain the features and benefits of this new GripperFix technology.

Haddock is also a featured speaker at this three-day event. On Wednesday, Feb. 5 beginning at 7.45 a.m., he will present an introduction to Understanding Metal Roofing: Part I. Often billed as "Metal Roofing 101," the course includes technical information presented in a common-sense fashion that makes the art and science of metal roofing clear, concise and understandable. Topics include the history of metal roofing, metals and metallic coatings, metallurgy, galvanic weathering and material selection criteria. Also covered: fabrication and manufacturing techniques, various seam types and panel profiles in addition to underlayments, the use and misuse of sealants, seam technologies and the principles of thermal cycling and panel anchorage.

Then, later on Wednesday morning beginning at 9.30 a.m., Haddock will present an advanced course building on the metal roofing essentials covered in the overview the day prior. This extended course, Understanding Metal Roofing: Part II will cover the coil coating process, common and popular steep slope construction and critical details of low slope installation, in addition to curved applications and wind issues. Finally, the program delves into system design, drainage principles and system selection criteria, including the principles of water-shedding and hydrostatic designs.

Contractors, architects, specifiers, roof consultants, engineers, building owners and maintenance staff will benefit from these sessions. And, it is the best “crash course” available for sales personnel in-industry. 

Course instructor, Rob Haddock hardly needs an introduction. He is a well-known expert in the field and has worked in various aspects of metal roofing for almost five decades―beginning as a laborer, then contractor, then forensic consultant, technical author, educator, innovator and Founder and CEO of S-5! attachment technologies. His writings and lectures (which number in the hundreds) have been translated into at least 10 languages, and he has won awards from MCA, CSI, ASTM, MBMA. His innovations have received more than 50 patents. For 27 years he has been a featured speaker at industry tradeshows, METALCON and IRE. Rob’s practical experience, colorful background and world travel add flavor to his technical expertise resulting in a “must-attend” course that is as poignant as it is entertaining for every educational or experience level in metal roofing trades and practices.

“Rob leads you down the path to understanding with such humor and simple clarity, you not only go away understanding, but remembering,” says former course participant, Darrell T. Blair.