New 2010 Photo Contest - New Rules

MIRO's goal for this year's photo contest has changed from past contests. Instead of judging between individual pictures, we are going to be judging between complete projects. We are looking for a full story to tell our customers.

We will offer this contest twice this year. The first contest will be from January to June and the second contest will be from July to December. Each winner will receive a $500 check from MIRO, and the check will be sent out promptly after the contest ends. Winners will be determined by in-house MIRO employees.

What needs to be submitted to qualify?

• Finished project photos
• Quote from someone within the project customer line. This could be a specifier, engineer, architect, representative, contractor, or distributor.

Additional items to improve the submittal:

• Project information
• Before pictures

Who can qualify to win?

• Representatives (Individual or as a company. Please specify when submitting the project.)
• Engineer
• Specifier
• Architect
• Distributor
• Contractor
• Building Owner

Please submit information by email to heidi@miroind.com or you can mail a digital copy on a disk to MIRO.

Photo Contest 2009

MIRO will be having two photo contests during 2009. We will give $1000 for the best MIRO rooftop support photo and $1000 for the worst rooftop support photo. There are no regulations to the number of pictures submitted per person. The higher the number of photos submitted, the better the chance to take home the money. To ask questions or to submit pictures, please email Heidi Neider at heidi@miroind.com. The winners will be announced December 2008 and checks will be sent in time for the christmas holiday season.

>> NEW: Click HERE to view a variety of the 2008 "worst" entries.

>> NEW: Click HERE to view a variety of the 2008 "best" entries.

2008 Best and Worst Rooftop Support Photo Contest Winners

MIRO Industries has been the front runner in engineering Rooftop Support Systems since we entered the roofing market in 1982. In the beginning, the first and only competitors were wood blocking and contractor-fabricated supports put directly on the roof membrane to carry the load of pipes and conduits. In the last 27 years, a plethora of competitors have entered the market place, but none to match the quality and warranty that MIRO Industries can offer our customers. Even after all these years and new competitors, wood blocking still continues to control over 50% of the market.

There are many reasons wood blocking can damage your roof membrane, but the main and simple reasons are as follows:

1. After long periods of time the wood will rot and decay underneath the pipe.
2. They often do not have a large enough foot print to allow for the appropriate amount of weight distribution.
3. They do not allow for thermal expansion and contraction that may take place in the pipe as the temperatures change.
4. They do not allow for adjustability in height as the roof tends to slope up and down

The easy solution of wood blocks can end up costing more time and money as the owner has to replace supports and possibly an entire roof membrane because of their failure.

As a result of this information, MIRO has a yearly contest where we request submittals for the WORST and BEST rooftop support pictures. This year we received many pictures showing the negative affects wood blocking and contractor-fabricated supports can have on the roof. We also received many pictures showing MIRO’s pre-manufactured rooftop supports.

First place prize for the WORST rooftop support picture and the award of $1000 goes to Jonathan Larsen with Monsen Engineering. The picture he submitted shows an extreme condition of large pipes being supported by a contractor constructed support that does not have a large enough footprint to carry the size or weight. It also does not allow for the thermal expansion and contraction large pipes might have when dealing with extreme temperatures. As result, the pipe support failed, creating more work and expenses for the owner.

First place prize for the BEST rooftop support picture and the award of $1000 goes to David Coleman with A.H. Deveney. The picture he submitted shows the versatility that our rooftop supports have. Our main product line has polycarbonate bases, but in this picture you can see that they used a stainless steel base and frame system. We also have the ability to support various ranges of heights, pipe sizes and can be placed in many conditions. At MIRO, we have a can-do mentality!

Honorable mentions:

Luis Nunez – Wood block decay $100

Don Wolfe – 16-Base Strut-7 $100

Cindy Zatto – Crossover $100