A snow scraper for flat roofs - The Passau-based family businessHaidl and its products are already well-known to many roof craftspeople. At DACH+HOLZ 2022, Haidl has been honoured with the "Start-Up Award" for its "ProfiTube" downpipe system. "My father is a tinkerer, always with an eye for what s needed on the construction site and what doesn't yet exist," says son Johannes. The flat roof scraper, for example, is one such product. Senior boss Johann Haidl discovered it at a fire service trade fair and then developed it further: "We fitted it with a higher aluminium shield and foam rubber. The scraper is our constant companion when working on flat roofs - to clear away mud and gravel residue for repairs, for example," adds his son. Haidl products are used by roofing professionals and their suitability is tested very carefully in the company's own tinsmith workshop.

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Façade finishes with aluminium profiles - Ali Reis is a master plumber and for him there is nothing more beautiful than neat façade finishes. "A metal sheet that matches the colour of the façade and forms a good finish looks classy," says the Hamburg native. To simplify profile cutting on the construction site, Ali Reis and his company Maxe Bedachungen have developed a special aluminium profile. "The corner rails with cut edge overlap have been available in plastic until now, but they are not UV-resistant," says Reis. The aluminium profiles, on the other hand, have a 40-year colour guarantee and are supplied by default in anthracite, black and red. "Other colours are possible, but standard colours are cheaper," says Reis, who uses aluminium profiled sheets from the manufacturer Prefa. The profiles are 2.50 metres long, so they fit into any van. Fo the future, Reis is planning also four-metre lengths. To meet any length required, the profiles can simply be stacked overlapping at then end making them also rainproof.. The master plumber developed a special machine to manufacture the profiles in batch production.

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Drones and AI for the energy transition - the history of Berlin-based Airteam (which generates 3D data by flying drones) is closely linked to Thomas Bücheler's entrepreneurial spirit. "My motivation is to prevent accidents at work and do my bit for the energy transition," says the entrepreneur, who is primarily focussed on the photovoltaic business. The still young company – founded five years ago – provides the roofer and solar panel installer with planning software as a measuring aid for implementing photovoltaic systems on roof surfaces. The innovation Airteam offers with this software is that it provides digital data for bid proposal management and that it can be imported directly into common industry software such as MF Dach, PV-Sol, Sunny Design and Autocad. "We also use AI (artificial intelligence) to teach the computer what a roof looks like, its parts and areas," explains Bücheler. For PV planning, distances to the eaves and ridge are automatically maintained, ridges are recognised, skylights are cut out and shading is taken into account.

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Safely on the roof - Udo Heyl is a master roofer with heart and soul and runs his own company in Kaiserlautern (LeiKoSi GmbH). Two work-related ladder accidents prompted him to develop a safety system. "Out of necessity," he recalls, "because I was not satisfied with the current systems." His equipment for securing ladders had to be quick to install and easy to use. The result was his ladder head safety device, which is mounted on the ground and hooked into the roof gutter. "It is important that the ladder protrudes one metre above the gutter," explains Heyl. As the crossbar of the ladder head safety device rests on the gutter brackets, it can also be used with plastic gutters and the weight is transferred to the gutter hooks. The ladder head safety device is DGUV-tested (the label of the German statutory accident insurance) and is subsidised by the workers’ compensation board with 50 percent.

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A "cutting fox" for flat roofs - Tobias Büttgen worked as a roofer for a long time and often wondered why it was so difficult to cut bitumen sheeting on flat roofs. He answered that question himself by inventing a cutting tool for flat roofs: the "Flat Roof Fox". After presenting the initial prototype at DACH+HOLZ 2022, he continued to work on the design implementing the feedback from the trade fair. "The response to the device was very good," says Büttgen. Reason enough to continue building, adapting and bringing the prototype to series production. It can now be operated via a display on the device or via mobile phone and has become much easier to use. To operate the device, the bitumen roll is placed on the cutter and the dimensions for the corresponding section sizes are entered. The cutting process then runs automatically. The automation of the work steps and the ease of operation save a lot of time. The machine is been ready for series production since November 2023 and will be presented for the first time at DACH+HOLZ International in 2024.

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Secure mounting point on the flat roof - Christoph Noreiks is a sales representative and deals with many different products from the construction sector. The question of a good and, above all, secure fastening for PV systems on flat roofs came up again and again. "Rubber mats are often used for this and exposed aggregate concrete slabs for balustrading against wind suction," explains Noreiks. Due to the considerable roof load involved, this relatively complex method is not permitted on many roofs. 

The solution that Christoph Noreiks has developed and now manufactures in a small workshop is a ballast-free mounting system that weighs just 600 grams per attachment point. 

The centrepiece is a stainless steel disc. With a diameter of 200 mm, the forces can be transferred to the roof over a large area. The disc is welded to the roofing membrane using a sleeve - bitumen, plastic or EPDM, depending on the roofing membrane. The system has a lift-off safety of 50 kilos (equivalent to 500 newtons) per disc point - better than all similar systems on the market to date. 

The discs, which are fitted with a screw fastening, are manufactured by hand in a small factory, a garage workshop. In other words, a genuine start-up company that aims to produce 100 per cent of its products in-house. However, the stainless steel plates are currently laser-cut and supplied by a supplier. 

The bracket, which is marketed under the name Ampix (www.ampix.online), is suitable for all technical systems on flat roofs, i.e. PV systems, solar thermal systems, air conditioning units and also antenna technology.

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Practical carpentry app - the "MeinZimmerer app" developed by Marco and Daniel Heine (MH-6 Web & App Development) offers an innovative solution for operational challenges in the carpentry trade. Based on his own experience in his parents' carpentry business, carpenter Daniel provided practical feedback, which his brother Marco, a software developer, quickly implemented. The user-friendly app with 16 functions, including digital reports, time and employee planning and material consumption documentation, is already being used by 450 companies. The high level of adaptability makes it attractive for small and large companies alike. Direct feedback from construction site users is incorporated into the continuous improvement process. The "MeinZimmerer app" is a successful example of congenial craft IT "made in Germany" emphasising the innovative strength of the Heine brothers. In addition to "MeinZimmerer-App", they also developed "MeinDachdecker-App" and "MeinHandwerker-App" with similar functions.

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