Start with the membrane and the ballast: confirm which section the membrane follows, since the issued Section 07 55 00 lists EPDM, PVC, or PMMA in its System Description but EPDM, PVC, or TPO in its Roof Membrane and Installation articles, and confirm that the ballast and paver layout come from a wind design the drawings show, since the ballast note asks the designer to size ballast to SPRI RP-4 and edit the Ballast Installation paragraph. Then check slope and drainage, the openings over drains, the deck’s capacity for ballast as dead load, the underlayment, the insulation R-value shown on the drawings, the separation layer, filter fabric, the flood test, and that the modified bitumen and hot asphalt paragraphs carried into the section are deleted.
Assemble the review package
Gather the roof plans with slopes, crickets, drains, overflows, and scuppers, the roof plan drawing with wind zones and enhanced perimeter and corner areas, the ballast and paver layout with walkways and equipment areas, the roof sections showing every layer from deck to ballast, the parapet, edge, overhang, drain, curb, and penetration details, the structural drawings with the roof deck type, the dead load allowed for ballast and pavers, and the flood test condition, the energy analysis with the roof R-value and any vapor retarder calculation, the mechanical, plumbing, and electrical roof plans, the site plan showing aircraft operating areas nearby, the fall protection anchorages, and the issued Section 07 55 00 with the membrane section it names (07 53 23, 07 54 19, 07 54 23, or 07 18 16) and Sections 07 22 00, 07 60 00, 06 10 00, and 01 33 29. Follow one drain from the high point that feeds it down through the ballast, fabric, insulation, and membrane, and one roof corner from the wind zone plan to the ballast placed there, before assuming the others match.
WBDG publishes UFGS 07 55 00: Protected Membrane Roofing (PMR) as a public guide-specification reference (accessed November 10, 2026). Use your project’s issued specification and amendments for the actual comparison; the guide specification does not automatically govern your project. The checklist below is an original suggested review workflow, not a reproduction of the UFGS requirements.
Eight checks to run against the issued set
Use one record per location or system. The CSV contains the same eight prompts plus fields for source revisions, observed evidence, the review owner, the decision, and closure references.
| Check | Sources to compare | Question to resolve |
|---|---|---|
| Which membrane section governs | System Description (membrane under Section 07 53 23, 07 54 19, or 07 18 16) + Roof Membrane note and bracket (EPDM, PVC, or TPO; Sections 07 53 23, 07 54 19, or 07 54 23) + Installation article (same three) + opening note (bituminous membranes flood-coated; polystyrene not in contact with asphalt) + Separation Layer note (slip sheet with bitumen, geotextile with single-ply, drainage mat with liquid-applied) + the issued membrane section | Has one membrane been chosen and named the same way in the System Description, Roof Membrane, and Installation articles, since the first offers PMMA but not TPO and the other two offer TPO but not PMMA, is the chosen membrane section issued and edited for use under the insulation rather than over it, and does the separation layer or drainage mat kept in the bracket match that membrane family, as the separation layer note describes? |
| Slope, drainage, drain openings, and overhangs | Opening notes (slope range; insulation floats if submerged and not ballasted; ice dams at eaves and scuppers without internal drains; SMACNA Architectural Sheet Metal Manual; undersides of decks and overhangs sealed with loose-laid membrane; an opening in insulation, filter fabric, and ballast above each drain basket; pavers over hidden drains marked) + Examination (substrate and framing sloped for positive drainage) + Ballast Installation (stone around interior drains; drains covered during placement; pavers marked) + roof plan, drain details, plumbing drawings | Does the roof plan show slopes within the range the opening note sets, with drains and overflows at every low point, does each drain detail show the opening through the insulation, fabric, and ballast or a marked paver over a hidden drain, where the roof drains to eaves or scuppers instead of internal drains, has the ice dam risk the note describes been addressed, and are the undersides of overhangs sealed where the membrane is loose-laid? |
| Wind design, ballast weight, and the roof plan drawing | Conformance and Compatibility note (design to SPRI RP-4; roof deck adequate for ballast as dead load) + Ballast notes (size and quantity from SPRI RP-4 and edit Ballast Installation; pavers preferred; no small aggregate near aircraft operations; freeze-thaw) + Ballast Installation (field and perimeter ballast weights, weighing tolerance) + Pre-Roofing Conference (Roof Plan Drawing with wind zones; signed calculations per ASCE 7-22, ASTM D4073, and ANSI/SPRI/FM 4435/ES-1 for a non-rated system) + SD-05 Wind Uplift Calculations + structural drawings | Has the Ballast Installation paragraph been edited to the SPRI RP-4 design rather than left with the guide’s weights, does the ballast and paver layout on the drawings follow the wind zones of the roof plan drawing, do the structural drawings carry the ballast and paver dead load, as the conformance note requires, is aggregate deleted where the roof is near aircraft operations, and since the calculation paragraph cites ASTM D4073, a tensile-tear test for bituminous membranes, has the specifier confirmed which test applies to the chosen membrane? |
| Underlayment, deck, and insulation below the membrane | Underlayment note (loose-laid membrane not placed directly on concrete or another hard, potentially rough deck) + Underlayment bracket (concrete, insulation suited to the membrane, mineral fiberboard, gypsum board, or glass mat gypsum roof board) + PART 2 note (insulation beneath the membrane under Section 07 22 00) + Examination items (flatness, joints sealed against bitumen drips, nailers, cants, venting for wet fill, wood deck paper, precast joints stripped with bituminous stripping) + Section 06 10 00 note (waterborne preservative) + roof sections and deck type | Since the underlayment note bars a loose-laid membrane directly on concrete while its bracket offers concrete as the underlayment, has the specifier matched the underlayment to how the membrane is attached, where any insulation sits under the membrane, is Section 07 22 00 issued and are both insulation layers drawn on the roof section, and have the Examination items written for bitumen drips and bituminous stripping been edited to the membrane and deck actually used? |
| Insulation above the membrane, R-value, and separation layer | Insulation Above the Membrane note (determine the R-value and show it at the detail; never less than the energy budget analysis; vapor retarder only where calculations under ASTM Manual 18 or the CRREL report require it) + Insulation article (extruded polystyrene to ASTM C578 intended for protected membranes; boards marked; drainage paths on the bottom layer; mortar-faced option; ribbed tops with flat-bottom pavers) + Separation Layer or Drainage Mat bracket + Insulation installation article + energy analysis + roof sections | Is the R-value of the insulation above the membrane shown at the roof detail, as the note asks, and does it match the energy analysis, is one separation material kept, a slip sheet, separation felt, or drainage mat, and drawn on the roof section, does the paver bottom chosen in the Pavers article suit the top of the insulation, ribbed pavers over smooth boards and flat pavers over ribbed ones, and where a vapor retarder appears on the drawings, does a calculation support it, as the note requires? |
| Filter fabric, pavers, aggregate, edges, and fire classification | Filter Fabric article and table (opening size, weight, tensile and puncture strength) + Filter Fabric Installation (laps, turned up above the ballast at the perimeter and penetrations, no joints parallel to the perimeter near the edge) + Pavers and Aggregate Ballast articles + Ballast article (solar reflectance) + Fire Resistance (UL 790 or FM Approval Guide classification) + edge and parapet details + Section 07 60 00 | Do the perimeter and penetration details show the filter fabric turned up above the ballast, do the edge and parapet details retain the ballast, with the edge metal coordinated with Section 07 60 00, does the paver layout cover walkways and equipment service areas, and is the fire classification the Fire Resistance article requires listed for the whole assembly, including the insulation and ballast kept? |
| Flood test, sequencing, and carried-over bitumen work | Flood Test (drains plugged and the roof flooded before insulation) + Sequencing + torch and hot-mopped modified bitumen safety bracket (2.1.4) + Bitumen Stops, Heating of Asphalt, and Temperature Limitations brackets + Priming of Surfaces (modified bitumen sheet manufacturer) + Membrane Preparation (“Unroll modified bitumen membrane materials”) + Protection of Applied Roofing and Water Cutoffs (modified bitumen) + Instructions to Personnel (modified bitumen membrane manufacturer) + structural drawings and drain details | Has the structural engineer confirmed that the deck can carry the flood test water and has the plumbing designer said how the drains are plugged and released, are the torch, hot-mopped, bitumen stop, and asphalt heating paragraphs deleted, since none of the membranes the section offers is modified bitumen and its opening note keeps polystyrene away from asphalt, and have priming, membrane preparation, protection, water cutoffs, and the closeout instructions been rewritten for the chosen membrane’s manufacturer? |
| Qualifications, warranty, inspection, and references | Qualification of Manufacturer and Applicator (applicator experience note and bracket default state different terms) + Warranty and Roof Membrane Manufacturer Warranty (fixed manufacturer term; note allows shorter terms for small, minor facilities; written acceptance of the insulation and accessories by the membrane manufacturer) + Contractor’s Warranty note (by service) + Inspection article and insulation technician note + Examination item o and Priming of Concrete and Masonry Surfaces (surface dryness “specified under paragraph FIELD QUALITY CONTROL”) + References article (no entry for the UL Fire Resistance Directory, NRCA R&W Manual, Florida Building Code, NRCA 4002, or MRCA manual) | Has the applicator experience bracket been set to the term the note recommends or the Government directs, has the warranty term been edited to the facility, as the warranty note allows, is the membrane manufacturer’s written acceptance of the insulation, separation layer, and ballast listed as a submittal, where are the surface dryness requirements that Examination and Priming wait on, since Field Quality Control states none, and have the documents cited in the torch bracket been deleted with it or added to the References article? |
Worked example: two membranes named, guide ballast weights near a flight line, and torch paragraphs kept
Illustrative example: a new two-story squadron operations building beside an airfield apron has a cast-in-place concrete roof deck with a protected membrane roof and a rooftop mechanical yard. The issued Section 07 55 00 keeps PMMA in the System Description and TPO in the Roof Membrane article, keeps concrete as the underlayment while the membrane is loose-laid, keeps screened gravel ballast and the guide’s Ballast Installation weights unedited, and keeps the whole torch and hot-mopped safety bracket. The roof plan drawing shows enlarged corner zones, but the ballast layout is uniform across the roof, the structural drawings carry no allowance for ballast or pavers, and the drain details show pavers over the drains with no marking and no opening through the insulation. No section of the project manual specifies the surface dryness that the Examination article points to.
Ask the architect and the roof consultant to choose one membrane and name it in all three articles, with its section issued, and to match the underlayment to the attachment, or adhere the membrane where the deck stays as the underlayment. Ask the roof consultant to size ballast to SPRI RP-4 for the corner and perimeter zones, edit the Ballast Installation paragraph, and replace gravel with pavers near the apron, as the ballast note directs, and ask the structural engineer to confirm the deck for the ballast and the flood test water. Ask the architect to detail an opening or a marked paver at every drain, and ask the specifier to delete the torch, hot-mopped, and asphalt paragraphs, define the surface dryness requirement, and add the membrane manufacturer’s acceptance of the insulation and ballast as a submittal.
Avoid a false conflict
Section 07 55 00 covers the layers above a protected membrane: the separation layer or drainage mat, extruded polystyrene insulation, filter fabric, and ballast or pavers, with the pre-roofing conference, the flood test, and the examination of the deck. The membrane and its flashings follow the section it names, Section 07 53 23 and the EPDM roofing guide, Section 07 54 23 and the roofing membrane guide for TPO, Section 07 54 19 for PVC, or Section 07 18 16 and the PMMA roofing guide, insulation under the membrane follows Section 07 22 00 and the roof insulation guide, edge metal and counterflashing follow Section 07 60 00, treated wood nailers follow Section 06 10 00, and drains follow the plumbing section, so check those before calling a requirement missing. Its membrane lists disagree, it keeps modified bitumen, torch, and hot asphalt paragraphs that no offered membrane uses, its applicator note and bracket disagree, its warranty article fixes a term the note lets the designer shorten, and its Examination article points to surface dryness requirements that Field Quality Control does not state. Its notes cite SPRI RP-4, the NRCA Roofing and Waterproofing Manual, the SMACNA Architectural Sheet Metal Manual, ASTM Manual 18, a CRREL report on vapor retarders, and ANSI/ASSE A1264.1; confirm the editions your project invokes, and of UFC 3-110-03 where the project follows it. Wind design, ballast, deck capacity, energy performance, and fire classification are decisions for the roof consultant, the structural engineer, and the architect, and the warranty is settled between the owner and the manufacturer. The current guide section cites ASCE 7-22, ASTM C29, C578, C726, C1177, C1396, D448, D751, D4073, D4751, and D5034, the FM Approval Guide, ANSI/ISEA Z87.1, CERTA, NFPA 58 and 241, the NRCA Roofing Manual, ANSI/SPRI/FM 4435/ES-1, SPRI RP-4, 29 CFR 1910 and 1926, and UL 790; confirm the editions your project invokes.
When requirements disagree, follow the project’s document-control and clarification process. Do not assume that drawings always override specifications, or the reverse. Identify the exact sources and request an authorized decision.
Close the issue across the affected documents
Record the location or tag, drawing and specification references, issue dates, observed difference, and the decision needed. Assign an owner and keep the item open until the response identifies the governing requirement. Check the revised drawings and specification references together; a response email alone may leave the issued package inconsistent.
For the overall process, use the guide to drawing and specification conflicts. Mark an inapplicable checklist row with a reason, and distinguish a verified correction from a question that still needs design information.
Where Groundbook fits
Groundbook’s drawing and specification review helps investigate potential disagreements in the documents you supply. Include the relevant specification sections and drawing references, then verify the cited evidence with the responsible reviewers before acting on a finding.