Step 1: Obtain Raw Materials
Every day, hundreds of tons of raw materials arrive at receiving docks and freight yards, before being transported to roofing shingle manufacturing facilities. These raw materials are transformed into the high quality, durable roofing shingles and specialty products used on homes and businesses.
Before the raw materials can be used to make shingles, they have to be processed and prepared ahead of time. Most shingle manufacturers process and prepare the raw materials onsite at their facilities.
Step 2:Material Prep
One material used in shingles is limestone rock. Tons of limestone rock that arrived at the plant by rail car or truck is unloaded and sent to crushing mills for processing. The limestone has to be crushed down into a fine powder.
Another material used to manufacture shingles is asphalt. The asphalt used in shingles has to be processed to remove impurities and satisfy the strictest quality requirements needed to produce strong, yet flexible shingles.
Once the asphalt is prepared and the limestone has been crushed to the proper consistency, the two are mixed together to make a material called “filled coating.”
Another preparation process performed is to create the shingle granules, which are those small “rock-like” bits on top of the singles. Rock is mined, crushed, and sized to ensure it is the proper size. Next, a ceramic coating is applied and mixed into the small rocks to help maintain the colour of the granules for the life of the roofing shingle.
Step 3 Shingle Production
Fibreglass matting is fed through rollers and into a special machine called a “coater.” Inside the coater, “filled coating,” which has been heated to more than 400 degrees Fahrenheit (more than 200 degrees Celsius), is then applied to both the top and bottom of the fibreglass matting.
After the “filled coating” has been applied, then a thin coating of sand is applied onto the sheets before there are fed into a another chamber where the granules are applied and pressed into the sheet to ensure they are embedded and do not fall off.
Next, the sheets are looped through a series of rolls, where a very fine mist of water is sprayed directly onto the sheets. The water mist helps remove heat from the sheets. Once cooled, the sheets have a strip of sealant applied, which will help provide protection against wind damage.
Now the sheets are ready to be cut into individual shingles, stacked on top of each other, and finally packaged into bundles. The bundles are wrapped and placed on pallets. Lastly, the shingles are taken to a storage area, where they will be picked up and shipped to shingle suppliers all across Canada to be used on homes, just like yours!
We hope you have enjoyed learning how roofing shingles are made. Remember to call the roofing experts at Logik Roofing by phoning 1.866.840.2914 for a free quote when your home needs new shingles!
