Under Pressure
Kia Forum Working Against the Clock in Inglewood, California
by Marcus Dodson, editor & publisher
The Kia Forum concert arena located in Inglewood, California, is the only arena-sized venue in the country dedicated to music and entertainment. The iconic venue attracts a wide variety of premier events, including the biggest names in music and entertainment, award shows, mixed martial arts, boxing, and more. Kia Forum was operating under a solid deadline that required them to remove the existing rooftop logo by Spring 2022. Tight timelines and supply shortages combined to create a challenging situation where the venue was at risk for missing its deadline.
Given the time constraints and lack of available materials, the 135,000-sq.ft. roof was too large to undergo a complete PVC reroof to remove the logo. CentiMark® Corporation, headquartered in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, which specializes in roofing and flooring installations, stepped in to provide an innovative roofing solution, utilizing GAF coating products. CentiMark’s alternative plan allowed the existing Kia Forum logo to be completely covered, with a new logo applied, thereby satisfying their obligations and providing them with a fresh roof design in a timely manner. This would not have been possible without the coating products carried by GAF. During the height of the supply shortage, GAF was also a well-stocked manufacturer and was able to supply enough coating products to finish the job.
“CentiMark was a great fit for this project, as we specialize in reroofing commercial, industrial, and public buildings and have over 50 years of industry experience,” said Philip Edwards, senior project manager for CentiMark. “As GAF Master Select contractors, no job is too big or too small, whether it’s a single owner or a large corporation. We know that we can provide solutions to any customer because we work with superior vendors like GAF.”
The 135,000-sq.ft. roof deck was power washed first to remove all dirt and debris and to prepare the existing PVC roof for coating application. Then GAF Unisil Primer base was applied over the existing PVC system. It was then topped with the GAF High‑Tensile Acrylic Top Coat in white, completely covering the previous logo ensuring Kia Forum successfully met their deadline. Lastly, GAF Kymax™ Coating was used to apply the Kia Forum logo to ensure a long-lasting, fade-resistant, protective rooftop logo.
“We were working against a tight deadline and Kia Forum was obligated to change the roof logo within a short period of time. Operating at the height of the material shortage, no other contractor or manufacturer was able to provide a viable solution to remove the existing rooftop logo,” noted Edwards. “GAF was the only manufacturer that was able to provide a viable solution because of their broad range of coating products. GAF products enabled us to cover the existing rooftop logo within a relatively short period of time and apply a lasting new logo of excellent quality even with subpar weather conditions.”
The project took place in April and May, a season inundated with water and mist permeating the air, creating less than ideal conditions for applying rooftop coatings. To help mitigate the weather issues, CentiMark took advantage of good days and maximized work time implementing longer work days during optimal weather conditions.
