Designing with efficiency and simplicity

By Jenny Yu.  

S-5! calculators give contractors code-based guidance for snow retention and solar mounting. 

Digital tools are increasingly helping roofing contractors design more efficient systems, from sales pitch to jobsite clean up. In this Roofing Road Trips® episode, Megan Ellsworth spoke with Jesse Winternitz, application engineer and product support manager at S-5!, about how S-5! calculators help contractors plan snow retention and solar mounting systems with greater speed and accuracy. 

The calculators are designed to give contractors a clear starting point for projects involving metal roofing and solar systems. “Our snow retention in our PV kit systems are written to building code and utilize our testing, which is all certified” Jesse stated. “If you don't know where to start a project, you can jump right in. There's information about your roof: what kind of roof do you have, the dimensions of your roof, the slope of your roof, your application. It can really get you a good visual and a report on what you need.” 

One of the biggest advantages of using a calculator is the visual component. “If you run our PV kit calculator, it'll show you the roof. It'll show you where the solar panels are on the roof and it'll show you how many attachments are needed on different panels,” Jesse explained. “By having that visual to show your customer and sell them on the project, that’s the best way to simplify the sales and installation process.” 

To achieve these results, S-5! calculators pull from extensive product and roof testing. This data allows the system to match roof type, manufacturer profiles and materials with appropriate attachment systems.  

“S-5! has hundreds of different tests,” Jesse said. “Our testing is not just specific to the S-5! product being used, but also the metal roof. Our calculators are good about pulling those tests and incorporating them into the calculation without you needing to do anything at all. Just by selecting the kind of roof you have, we can give you the accurate information that you need.” 

Jesse shared a recent example where the calculator helped correct a snow retention plan that originally called for excessive rows of snow retention. “They were able to cut the budget significantly. It was like a fifth of the material and a significant cut in labor as well,” Jesse recalled.  

For contractors newer to using digital tools, S-5! provides multiple avenues of support. “We can help you over the phone, over a Zoom call or just over email and help you design a system,” he said. “We also have resources on our website, blogs, FAQs and even YouTube videos walking through the process.” 

Read the first article in this series and Listen to the podcast to learn more about how S-5! calculators help contractors design safer, more efficient roof attachment systems.