A Garden Oasis on your Roof Offers Business Owners and Tenants Many Benefits

Since the Hanging Gardens of Babylon in 7th Century B.C., people have utilized a large variety of green applications including sod, plant, and garden installations. While these applications have progressed over the years to the extensive, intensive, and garden applications we see today, the benefits of maintaining a rooftop garden application are undeniable!
Garden rooftops offer an abundance of benefits for your business and the environment:

    • Plants can reduce the overall energy consumption of your business by reducing the heat
      consumption of your building and providing resistance to thermal radiation
    • Limits the volume of rain run-off (Retains 50%-90% of typical rain fall on roof)
    • Improves the aesthetic appearance of your building
    • Can reduce interior noise by up to 40 decibels
    • Assists in the qualification for LEED credits and federal, state, and local tax incentives
    • Can extend the service life of your roof system
    • Adds recreational areas for tenants and peaceful/therapeutic areas for residents
    • Offers environmental benefits by processing airborne toxins and re-oxygenating the air
    • Creates a natural habitat for plants and animals
    • Reduces dust and smog levels

Perhaps the most important part of the garden roof application is the water-tight seal that must be created below it. By utilizing a hot-fluid applied rubberized asphalt you can be sure your garden stays fully hydrated and your building interior doesn't suffer the consequences of water leaking in. Here is an example of hot-applied Monolithic Membrane on the Denver Botanic Gardens roof top.

Douglass Colony Group can assist you every step of the way to transform your building into a garden oasis. We provide waterproofing services to ensure you a water-tight seal and we offer a variety of garden roofing options to fit your needs and desired aesthetic qualities. Call us today to see how we can convert your business into an energy efficient, environmentally sound entity.

Energy Efficiency Achieved Through Sunscreens

Often thought of as an aesthetic addition to any building, sunscreens serve many purposes including reducing a building's heat, glare, and overall energy consumption as well as contributing to LEED Certifications for all types of buildings. By installing a sunscreen, you can save 13%-22% in total energy consumption and see a 36%-42% reduction in peak energy demand. Furthermore, studies show that buildings utilizing daylight management systems increases worker productivity/comfort, lowers absenteeism, and improves educational performance.

Types of Sunscreens: While there are many different types of sunscreens available on the market today, the more common ones include: Cantilevered, Suspended, Perforated, Vertical, and Horizontal. All are effective sunscreen applications that are differentiated mostly by the aesthetic design preference of the building owner.

How it works: Typically sunscreens are focused on East and South sides (sometimes West also) of the buildings to shield the building from the most direct rays of the sun. Sunscreens block direct sunlight from entering the building but allow ambient light to still enter, thus giving daylight to the business without the associated exorbitant energy costs. Whether angled vertically/horizontally or perforated, all sunscreens essentially perform the same light shielding functions.

Douglass Colony Group designs, fabricates, and installs custom-made sunscreens in any color, size, or design your business is looking to achieve. With our local fabrication/finishing shop, we are able to offer customized sunscreens at competitive prices and with a fraction of the lead time of other manufacturers. Whether you're looking for pre-manufactured or custom sunscreens, our qualified metal technicians and expert in-house staff can help you from start to finish of your sunscreen design/installation process.

Douglass Colony Group can help you choose the appropriate system for your building. Based on the percentage of sun you would like to block, a sunscreen system can be chosen based upon:

1. Cantilever length
2. Blade shape/profile
3. Outrigger shape/profile
4. Connection methods
5. Color/finish

Give us a call today and see how sunscreens can save you money on your energy bills!

Call 303-288-2635 or toll free 1-877-288-0650

We've Got Mail! Douglass Colony Now Allows You to Contact Our Service Department Directly!

Not quite sure how to explain your leak? Wouldn't it be easier to just send a picture of it? Now you can email your pictures, questions, and information directly to our Service Department for immediate response at service@douglasscolony.com.

Contact us today for all your service/repair needs!

Client Testimonial

"I cannot recommend Douglass Colony and their work highly enough. From the time taken to assess my needs, suggest solutions and to make certain all my questions were answered, to the rapid and complete installation of final product, Douglass Colony's people are first rate. They are our first choice for future projects."

David D. Myers
Rex Oil Company
[Project: Rex Oil Company's New Headquarters in Thornton]

Visit our booth at the upcoming tradeshows!

    • "Environment, Energy & Sustainability Symposium & Exhibition" (Colorado Convention
      Center) on June 15 & 16, 2010

    • "Great Roofs for the West Symposium" (Denver Botanic Gardens) on June 17, 2010

    • Colorado Real Estate Journal's "2010 Retail Owners and Property Managers Conference
      & Expo" (The Inverness Hotel and Conference Center) on June 22, 2010

We hope to see you there!