Upside down - Englert Inc. · PDF fileseam metal ceiling would be the precise opposite of installing a metal roof and gravity would be the major challenge he’d have to overcome

76 metalmag • FEBRUARY 2007 FoR A F R EE sU B scR i pt ion v i s i t w w w.m etalmag.com

Roofing Contractor Brian Page is a visionary. Twelve years ago, he decided to install a standing-seam metal

roof at his first workshop in Tunbridge, Vt.—as interior ceil-

ing material for the 40- by 40-foot (12- by 12-m) building.

Now the owner of the Mad Cow Division of Iron Horse

Roofing Inc., Croydon, N.H., and an experienced metal roof-

ing worker, Page was working in uncharted territory when he

first came up with the idea. He knew installing a standing-

seam metal ceiling would be the precise opposite of installing

a metal roof and gravity would be the major challenge he’d

have to overcome.

He’d figured out in his head how to do it, what kind of scaf-

folding he would need and how many “hands” it would ulti-

mately take to hold the panels in place. “My guys were cursing

me when I told them what we were going to do,” he laughs.

But their curses turned to cheers only four hours later when

they completed installing Perth Amboy, N.J.-based Englert

Inc. Series 1300 panels in the 40- by 40-foot (12- by 12-m)

ceiling of the workshop.

The experience validated Page’s belief that standing seam

could be just as practical and aesthetic of a solution inside a

building as it was outside. That sparked him to talk to busi-

nesses in central New Hampshire about installing the exterior

roofing panel as a ceiling product.

First Customer Page’s first customer was the Vermont Butter & Cheese

Co., a family-owned company that has been making artisanal

hand-crafted cheeses for more than 20 years. Owners Allison

Hooper and Bob Reese started the company in a small barn by

installing standing-seam Panels on Ceilings

Upsidedown

ByKevinCorCoran

[interiors]

FEBRUARY 2007 • metalmag 77FoR A F R EE sU B scR i pt ion v i s i t w w w.m etalmag.com

Brianpageinstalledenglertseries1300,11/2single-lockpanelsinhisnewworkshopandonthesoaringceilingofhis3-storypost-and-beamoffice.


Hooper’s house in Brookfield, Vt. Reese was

selling the cheese, and Hooper was making

it. Then, in 1989, the team moved into a

larger creamery located in Websterville,

near Barre, Vt. In the beginning, they occu-

pied one-third of the building and put all

their money into the purchase of a boiler,

pasteurizer and vat. When they began to

structurally upgrade the facility four years

later, it was then that Page convinced the

owners to install a standing-seam metal

panel ceiling.

“They were delighted because we com-

pleted the work so quickly,” he recalls. “But

they were even more pleased later on when

the local health officer said the standing

seam was a good choice because plant

employees could easily clean the ceiling

and remove any bacteria that could grow

in a cheese-making environment. That’s

exactly what the plant management found

after it began steam cleaning the standing

seam without worrying about damaging a

painted gypsum ceiling.” Soon they had to

add more equipment, more employees and

more farmers to their team. Today, Vermont

Butter & Cheese has 29 employees and works

with 21 family farms.

at Work and HomeLike any zealous innovator, Page made his

own environment his laboratory. In 1999

he moved his business from Vermont to

New Hampshire. And in 2000 he decided to

install Englert Series 1300, 1 1/2 single-lock

panels in his new workshop. Three years

later he built a new office and installed the

same Englert series panel on the soaring ceil-

ing of his 3-story post-and-beam office.

The office has high walls leading up to the

lofty standing-seam cathedral ceiling. The

floor level is split in half by a towering spiral

staircase that rises from the center of the

room up through the roof into a cupola with

a view of the surrounding New Hampshire

countryside. Track lighting installed across

the standing seam brings light to the room.

Unlike a wood-beamed ceiling, the standing

seam is much less expensive to install and

adds light and dimension to the room.

The panels range in width from 16 to 20

inches (406 to 508 mm). When mechani-

cally seamed into place, the panels’ seams

create vertical lines that give an illusion of

much greater height and length than wood

or gypsum.

“It also gives an architect the ability to

choose from 26 standard ceiling colors or

even a custom color if the client is willing

to pay a premium,” Page notes.

And there are economic advantages to

using standing seam, as well. It’s less expen-

sive than a wood ceiling and takes about a

day to install. “You can do any ceiling just

by adding layers to the scaffolding,” Page

says, noting the biggest challenge is hold-

ing the standing seam up while it is seamed

into place.

Otherwise, the installation process for

a peak ceiling is identical to an exterior

The installation process for a peak ceiling is identical to an exterior roof—except it is installed upside down.

Brianpagechoseastanding-seamceilingforhisofficebecauseit’slessexpensivetoinstall,addslighttotheroom,andgivestheillusionofgreaterheightandlengththanwoodorgypsum.



theentrywayofBrianpage’shomefeaturesmetalpanels.thepitchoftheceilingismodest,buttheseamsgivethemetalpanelsacathedraleffectthatgracefullytapersdowntomeetthewallsandgrandstaircase.


roof—except it is installed upside down.

There is an inverted ridge cap where the

standing seam comes together at the ceil-

ing peak. And the “crown molding” is

made of panel either cut flush to the gyp-

sum wall panel or folded like a breadbox

around it.

Page also has installed a peaked standing-

seam ceiling in the soaring 2-story entry-

way of his home in Croydon. The effect is

striking. Enter his front door, and a classic

cherry-wood, 16-step staircase rises straight

from the entryway to the second floor of

the house. A triple roundhead window high

above the entry door brings natural light

into the entryway. Capping it all is a stand-

ing-seam metal ceiling in slate gray anchored

in the middle by a ceiling fan with an amber

light bowl. The pitch of the ceiling is mod-

est, but the seams give the metal panels a

cathedral effect that gracefully tapers down

to meet the walls and grand staircase.

Depending on the time of day, either

natural light or the ceiling fan’s lamp illu-

minate the painted metal ceiling with a

glow that alters the mood of the entryway.

Early morning, there’s a soft diffused light.

But as day wanes and the lights come on, the

standing seam radiates a soft amber glow that

brings a warm, luminous quality to the room.

A lighter sandstone-colored standing seam

is installed in Page’s 40- by 50-foot (12- by

15-m), below-grade family room, and the

results are similar. He and his crew fabri-

cated the Englert Series 1300 panels out-

side the patio doors to the family room

and installed the seamless material that

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[ interiors]

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runs from the entry to an oak wet bar at the

other end of the 50-foot (15-m) room.

The standing seam gives character and

definition to the room, adding the illusion

of space. But instead of the metal used as

molding in the home’s entryway, Page used

wood molding to mask where the standing

seam meets the plasterboard walls. Again,

track lighting is used to illuminate most

of the space. Top hats and some backlit

transparency lighting provide the balance of

light in the bar area.

Using standing-seam panels was equally

appealing to Page’s wife and business part-

ner, Meredith. “It was a pleasure not to have

the dust and mess that a gypsum ceiling

creates when it’s being installed,” she notes.

“You don’t have to tape it, sand it, paint

it and then repaint it every few years. The

panel in the office and the house was much

faster to install, and it’s so easily cleaned.”

suCCess storiesPage’s company serves much of northern

New England, and he has been successful in

installing standing-seam ceilings in a number

of businesses, as well. It wasn’t something he

planned, but he has become a consultant to

architects, builders and homeowners looking

to use trend-setting materials in their projects.

“I enjoy working with people on their ideas,

and I particularly like how they react to the

results.”

One of those customers was the Goodrich

Oil Co. in nearby Newport, N.H., where

Page installed a standing-seam panel ceiling

in the company’s 60- by 60-foot (18- by 18-

m) vehicle garage.

“The owner had already started to put

in the stripping for a gypsum board ceil-

ing when I told him I could do the entire

job much faster with standing seam,” Page

recalls. “He ripped out the stripping, and

we had the ceiling long before it could have

been done with conventional materials.”

Page contends that the metal is far more

durable and weather resistant than any other

interior ceiling material. “A commercial

A mechanically seamed metal panel system virtually eliminates all the time-consuming, labor-intensive requirements of installing a gypsum ceiling.

theGoodrichoilCo.,newport,n.H.,hasastanding-seampanelceilinginits60-by60-footvehiclegarage.

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garage where vehicles are constantly enter-

ing and leaving is going to be susceptible to

moisture and variances in temperature,” Page

explains. “Sooner or later that ceiling board

is going to droop and have to be replaced.

He’ll never have to replace the metal, which

was coated to withstand all kinds of outdoor

temperatures and conditions.”

Winter weather conditions may be a major

or contributing cause of joint-compound

bond failures, delayed shrinkage, beading,

joint shadowing and gypsum-board sagging.

Kynar-coated metal panels do not absorb

moisture, and the caulks, compounds and

coatings that can shrink or crack on conventional ceilings are not a

problem with standing-seam metal panels. And the standing seam,

of course, meets and exceeds UL-90 and fire-resistant codes well

beyond that of conventional interior materials.

“A mechanically seamed metal panel system virtually eliminates

all the time-consuming, labor-intensive requirements of installing

a gypsum ceiling, as well,” Page notes. “The metal material is more

expensive than gypsum but the installation time is much quicker

and the overall cost can be less.”

He also has convinced customers to use it as an interior wall

panel, particularly in applications where environment and aesthet-

ics might normally clash.

Witness Dartmouth Motors, a large Chevrolet dealership in

Newport, where Page originally had installed an Englert Series

1300 Hartford green standing-seam roof on the exterior of the

Bycoveringthewallsoftheservicedepartmentinstandingseam,dartmouthMotors,newport,n.H.,hasfoundawaytokeeptheworkareasfreeofgreaseandotherliquidsthatcanpenetrateplasterboardwalls,leavingunsightlyandirremovablestains.



dealership’s sales and service facility. He

also convinced the owner and service

manager to install the same panel in off

white on the upper walls of the building’s

14 service bays.

Auto service departments are naturally

dirty environments where oil; engine flu-

ids; and dirt from brake systems, tires and

vehicle underbodies constantly cover the

bays in the course of a working day. Part

of that detritus gets on the walls. By cov-

ering the walls of the service department

in standing seam, Dartmouth Motors has

found a way to keep the work areas free

of grease and other liquids that can pene-

trate plasterboard walls, leaving unsightly

and irremovable stains.

PVDF coatings like the one on the

standing seam at Dartmouth Motors

contain fluoropolymers and feature gloss

retention, which affects the tonal appear-

ance and stain resistance of a coating.

Consequently, a PVDF coating is highly

chemical and stain resistant and can be

wiped clean easily and quickly. Employees

at Dartmouth Motors simply wipe down

the standing seam to remove dirt and

grease buildup, restoring the material to

its original off-white color.

a steP aHead“There are the exceptional craftsmen

and the highly successful mega project

contractors in our industry,” notes Jerry

Bowes, Englert’s northern New England

sales manager. “But Brian Page represents

an exceptional breed of contractor who

has been a step ahead of his time in find-

ing new uses for standing seam.”

Critical now, Bowes says, is letting

architects and developers know that

standing seam opens up new practical

and aesthetic design choices for commer-

cial and residential applications. “Many

of the same benefits that make standing

seam the roofing material of choice also

apply to its interior use, as well.”

Metal by its durability and maintenance-

free characteristics increases a building’s

value. Its special coatings resist dirt and

environmental aging. It is surprisingly

lightweight compared to other interior

ceiling and wall materials, and it won’t rot,

crack, split, break or burn. And it comes in

many styles, colors and finishes.

Architects also should know they are

choosing an environmentally correct build-

ing material that is made from recycled

metal.

The next step? “Brian’s work will lead us

to consider interior uses for other forms of

standing seam, including copper, aluminum

and stainless steel,” Bowes postulates. “It

might be very interesting to see the types of

coatings and finishes that can be developed

for use with different metals as a ceiling

material in retail and hospitality environ-

ments.”

Kevin Corcoran is vice president of business

development for Englert Inc., Perth Amboy, N.J.

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Upside down - Englert Inc. · PDF fileseam metal ceiling would be the precise opposite of installing a metal roof and gravity would be the major challenge he’d have to overcome