Commercial Roofing in Newmarket

How we handle commercial roofing

Commercial Roofing in Newmarket

Commercial roofing covers a broad range of work: flat roofs on office extensions and retail units, pitched roofs on warehouses and farm buildings, single-ply membranes on modern commercial premises, and leaded or slated roofs on older business properties in town centres. The common thread is that a commercial roof failure costs more than the repair itself - a leak above stock, equipment or a rented business space creates knock-on costs that mount up quickly. Keeping a commercial roof in good condition is straightforward when issues are caught early.

We work on commercial properties in Newmarket and the surrounding area, including Bury St Edmunds, Cambridge, Ely, Burwell and Histon. The area includes a wide variety of commercial building types, from older town centre premises to modern industrial units and agricultural buildings.

Commercial Flat Roofing

Flat roofs are the most common commercial roof type in the UK, covering everything from single-storey extensions behind shops to large warehouse spans. The most widely used systems for commercial flat roofs are built-up felt (BUR), torch-on felt, and EPDM rubber membrane. Single-ply systems such as TPO and PVC membrane are also used on larger commercial spans where speed of installation and long material life are priorities.

Built-up felt systems use multiple layers bonded together to create a waterproof barrier. They are straightforward to repair and patch, and most roofing contractors can work with them. EPDM rubber is a single-layer system bonded or mechanically fixed to the deck. It is flexible, resistant to UV degradation, and well suited to roofs with multiple penetrations such as pipework, vents and rooflights.

A common problem on commercial flat roofs is standing water caused by inadequate falls or blocked outlets. Water pooling degrades any membrane faster than normal weathering. When surveying a flat roof, checking the drainage layout and outlet positions is as important as inspecting the membrane surface itself.

Flat roof replacement on a commercial building in the Newmarket area typically costs £70 to £120 per square metre for a torch-on felt system, and £80 to £140 per square metre for EPDM, depending on deck condition, access and the number of penetrations. Larger roofs attract a lower per-metre rate. These figures cover the full replacement including stripping, any necessary deck repairs and a new membrane.

Commercial Pitched Roofing - Tiles, Slates and Metal Sheeting

Pitched commercial roofs include concrete and clay tiled roofs on older business premises, natural and synthetic slate on period buildings in town centres, and profiled metal sheeting on agricultural and industrial buildings. Each material has different maintenance needs and a different failure pattern.

On older tiled and slated roofs, the most common issues are slipped or broken coverings caused by nail failure or impact, failed lead or mortar at ridges and hips, and deteriorated underlay that allows water to track in when a tile is displaced. Spot repairs address individual slipped tiles; once nail fatigue is widespread across a roof slope, a full re-roof becomes more cost-effective than ongoing patching.

Profiled metal roofs on industrial and agricultural premises are durable but corrode at fixings and laps over time, particularly where roof lights or ridge cappings have been poorly sealed. Replacement of individual sheets and re-sealing of laps is possible, but sheets that have corroded through need replacing rather than patching.

Roof Repairs on Commercial Properties

Commercial roof repairs should be approached differently from domestic repairs. Access to a commercial roof often requires a safe working platform or mobile elevated work platform (MEWP), and working around a live business beneath adds planning requirements that a residential job does not. Out-of-hours working is sometimes necessary to avoid disruption to the occupier.

A repair starts with identifying the actual source of a leak, which is not always directly above where water appears inside. Water travels along purlins, rafters and decking before it finds a way through a ceiling. A thorough visual inspection of the roof surface, flashings, penetrations and gutters is needed before any repair work begins, to avoid fixing the wrong area and missing the real entry point.

Zinc Roofing on Commercial Buildings

Zinc is increasingly specified on commercial extensions, entrance canopies, curved roofs and contemporary commercial buildings where a distinctive, low-maintenance finish is required. Zinc standing seam systems are lighter than traditional lead, highly resistant to corrosion, and develop a protective patina over time that requires no maintenance. They are particularly well suited to modern commercial buildings and architect-designed extensions in town centre locations such as Newmarket and Cambridge.

Zinc work requires specialist skills and tools that differ from standard slating and tiling. If you are specifying a new commercial building or extension and considering zinc, it is worth discussing the detail at design stage rather than treating it as a straightforward like-for-like swap with another material.

Guttering and Drainage on Commercial Roofs

Gutters on commercial roofs carry a much larger volume of water than domestic systems and block faster if maintenance is neglected. Box gutters built into a flat roof structure are a particular risk: once blocked they overflow internally, and the water has nowhere to go except through the roof structure. Cast iron gutters on older commercial premises can crack and leak at joints when the sealant fails - repainting the outside of a cast iron gutter while the inside corrodes is a common mistake that leads to expensive structural repairs later.

Regular gutter clearance - at least twice a year on a building surrounded by trees - prevents the majority of water ingress problems on commercial flat roofs before they start.

Leadwork on Commercial Buildings

Lead is used on commercial buildings at parapet copings, chimney flashings, valley gutters and flat roof coverings. On older business premises, lead detailing is often original and may be many decades old. Lead that has been over-fixed or laid in lengths too long to allow for thermal movement will crack and split. Replacement lead should be fixed in shorter bays with adequate drape and correctly dressed to the upstand, not just forced flat and dressed tight to a wall.

What to Expect From a Commercial Roofing Project

A commercial roofing project starts with a thorough roof survey. We will inspect the membrane or coverings, the flashings, the drainage and any roof penetrations, and give you a written report of what we find and what work is needed. From there, we will quote for the repairs or replacement separately so you can see exactly what each element costs.

On larger projects, we will discuss access arrangements, timing relative to your business operations, and any temporary weatherproofing needed if the work extends over more than one day. The condition of the decking or sarking beneath is not always known until the old covering is stripped, so it is worth discussing how deck replacement is handled in the quote before work begins.

If you have a commercial property in Newmarket, Bury St Edmunds, Cambridge, Ely, Burwell or Histon that needs a roof survey or repair, call us to arrange a visit at a time that suits your business.