Two roofs of recent public buildings, the same technological failure

The main objective of this research work is to present two case studies of recently constructed public buildings in Portugal which have faced problems in the roof system. Both buildings were constructed in 2004 and are located in the north of Portugal. One is a swimming pool and the other is a multi-use pavilion. They have as main roof structural elements glued laminated timber (glulam) arches and beams, respectively. The adopted roof cover system of both buildings has zinc sheets as the outer face finishing. In this paper the observed defects in these roof systems are presented and analyzed. The associated causes are discussed and the proposed and implemented repairing/retrofitting solutions are also presented. Recommendations for future design and construction of this type of structural solutions are made.