HVAC under pressure
Air handling units and chillers continuously offset the heat received through the roof.
Cool roof for the pharmaceutical industry
Cool roof for the pharmaceutical industry
Relieve your HVAC systems in summer, with no interior work and no impact on your GMP/GxP certifications.
-7 to -8°C
load on the roof
up to -40%
on roof-related cooling
0 impact
on your certifications
Why act
Roof heat
weakens your controlled conditions.
On a pharmaceutical site, thermal stability is a regulatory imperative. A dark, exposed roof adds a load to already strained HVAC systems.
Rising consumption
Holding setpoints in summer is costly when the roof reaches 70-80°C.
Ageing waterproofing
Many pharma sites have old bituminous waterproofing, weakened by UV.
Every intervention scrutinised
Interior works raise questions of qualification, clean zones and audits.
The simplest, lowest-risk lever: act on the roof, from the outside.
The Covalba solution
Passive thermal relief,
without touching the interior.
Cool roof acts at the source: it stops the roof from absorbing heat, so there is less heat for your HVAC systems to offset — without altering your processes or regulated zones.
Conventional roof
up to 80°Cat the surface
- Dark surface
- Absorbs heat
- Strains air conditioning
Cool roof
up to 90%of radiation reflected
- Light-colored surface
- Stays cooler
- Reduces the thermal load
- 100% roof-side, no work in clean zones
- No impact on your GMP, GxP, ISO certifications
- Passive solution, no energy consumption
- Durable premium systems (CovaTherm 20, SRI 118)
A well-applied cool roof de-risks the decision: it acts on the roof, not on your compliance posture.
Durability
The Covalba system
keeps its performance over time.
On a pharma site, durability and stable performance matter as much as price: a coating that loses its reflectivity becomes recurring maintenance.
Standard acrylic coating
Low cost to apply
Price per m²
~€10
Service life
2-5 years
Over 10 years
€25-30
- Reflectivity drops quickly
- Chalking and yellowing
- More frequent reapplication
Covalba polyurethane system
Stable performance for demanding sites
Price per m²
€18-20
Service life
8-10 years
Over 10 years
€18-20
- Durable polyurethane resin
- Anti-UV finishing varnish
- Reflectivity retained longer
Polyurethane systems with an anti-UV finishing topcoat (CovaTherm 20) keep a high solar reflectance index (SRI 118 after accelerated ageing) over the long term.
ROI & energy
An investment that pays back fast.
On a permanently air-conditioned site, cooling savings add up every summer and the coating durably protects the roof.
up to -40%
on roof-related cooling consumption
ROI < 2-3 yrs
on an air-conditioned / controlled-conditions site
up to 20 years
of service life (CovaTherm 20, SRI 118)
0 impact
on certifications and audits
The real gain depends on surface area, regulation systems and climate zone. Covalba quantifies your case during the technical study.
What you gain
Less heat received, less cooling to produce.
By cutting solar gain through the roof, cool roof directly reduces the load transmitted to your HVAC systems.
From the first summer
-7 to -8°C
of thermal load on the roof
Relieved HVAC systems
Less heat to offset for chillers and air handling units.
More stable conditions
A reduced thermal load helps hold setpoints during summer peaks.
Compliance preserved
No interior work: your audits and certifications are unaffected.
Extended waterproofing
The coating protects the substrate and delays roof replacement.
ESG argument
A passive action to value within your decarbonation roadmap.
Beyond energy, here is how cool roof adapts to each type of site.
Your buildings
A solution suited to pharmaceutical and healthcare sites.
GMP/GxP production, laboratories, regulated warehouses and healthcare logistics: thermal control and compliance are critical.
Production01
GMP/GxP production units
Reduce the thermal load on controlled environments.
Lab02
Laboratories & R&D
Stabilise the ambient conditions without touching the installations.
Storage03
Temperature-controlled warehouses
Relieve cooling on regulated storage areas.
Logistics04
Healthcare logistics platforms
Limit the heating of large volumes.
Packaging05
Packaging lines
Preserve a stable environment for packaging.
The key question: how to intervene without disrupting a site under controlled conditions?
A controlled operation
4 steps, entirely on the roof.
Everything happens from the outside, with no penetration into your regulated zones. Your audits and production are not impacted.
Step 01
Diagnosis & qualification
Assessment of the roof, access and your documentary requirements (procedures, PPE, buffer zones).
Step 02
Secure preparation
High-pressure cleaning and substrate preparation, in line with the site's protocols.
Step 03
Application from the outside
Continuous spray application. Machines on the ground, only the hoses go up.
Step 04
Control & follow-up file
Quality verification and handover of traceability records for your audits.
No work in clean zones · No production downtime
Concrete results
Proof from the roof,
not from the pitch.
Surface temperature readings and operator feedback from industrial sites equipped with Covalba cool roof.
-7 to -8°C
of thermal load on the roof
up to -40%
on roof-related cooling
0 downtime
in production, 100% external works
Before launching your project, here are the most common questions.
FAQ
Your questions,
our answers.
The questions most often raised by infrastructure and maintenance directors of pharmaceutical sites.
Another question? Let's talkPharmaceutical cool roof
Reduce the thermal load of your pharma sites, risk-free.
Request a tailored study: we quantify the thermal gain and the cooling savings of your roof. 100% roof-side works, audit-safe.
- Tailored study within 48h
- 100% roof-side works
- No commitment
Pharmaceutical dossier
Cool roof for the pharmaceutical industry: relieving HVAC without touching compliance.
Pharmaceutical sites operate under controlled conditions. In summer, a dark roof adds a significant thermal load to already strained systems.
Why the roof weighs on a regulated site
A GMP/GxP unit maintains strict setpoints via AHUs and chillers. When the roof reaches 70-80°C, part of that heat is transmitted and must be offset continuously.
Passive relief, with no impact on certifications
Cool roof is applied entirely on the roof, with no penetration into clean zones and no modification of interior installations. It changes neither your setpoints nor your compliance posture.
The cool roof principle, validated by research
A reflective roof combines high solar reflectance and high emissivity. This passive cooling is documented by public laboratories and translates into a measurable drop in cooling consumption.
Premium systems for high requirements
Covalba favours polyurethane systems with an anti-UV topcoat (CovaTherm 20) that keep a high SRI over the long term. For tired waterproofing, CovaSeal combines waterproofing and thermal performance.
Substrate compatibility
Bituminous membrane, steel deck, EPDM, PVC, fiber cement, concrete: a technical diagnosis validates the substrate and steers towards the right solution.
Waterproofing, ESG and building assets
Beyond cooling, cool roof extends the life of the waterproofing by protecting the substrate from UV and thermal shocks, and fits into a decarbonation roadmap.
Sources
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Heat Island Group, Cool Roofs. https://heatisland.lbl.gov/coolscience/cool-roofs
- U.S. EPA, Using Cool Roofs to Reduce Heat Islands. https://www.epa.gov/heatislands/using-cool-roofs-reduce-heat-islands
- ADEME, urban heat islands and passive cooling. https://www.ademe.fr