Learning Academy

Architectural sheet metal, one detail at a time

32 short lessons in 7 tracks, written from the same published standards, codes and manufacturer data the Design Center uses. Each lesson ends with a short check; finish every lesson in a track for a certificate.

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5 lessons · about 24 min

Foundations

The metals, how they are sized and finished, which may touch, and how far they move.

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5 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Sheet metals and where each is used
Galvanized, Galvalume, aluminum, copper, stainless and zinc: what each one is and the numbers that name it.
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5 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Gauge, thickness and weight
Why gauge runs backwards, why the same gauge is a different thickness in stainless, and how to work out what a piece weighs.
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5 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Finishes and reading a color chart
PVDF and Kynar 500, AAMA 2605, SMP, mill and anodized finishes, and how to read the McElroy and PAC-CLAD charts.
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5 min · 8 slides · 4 questions
Dissimilar metals
Which roofing metals can touch, which cannot, and how to separate them.
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4 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Thermal movement
How far a metal run moves between its temperature extremes, and why the guides leave gaps.
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4 lessons · about 22 min

Roof edge & wind

ES-1 edge metal, how edge wind pressure is found, choosing the edge, and FM Approvals.

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7 min · 10 slides · 4 questions
ES-1 edge metal basics
What the ES-1 standard tests, how to read a published Drexel rating, and what an authorized fabricator is.
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6 min · 8 slides · 4 questions
Wind loads made simple
How ASCE 7 edge pressures are found, why corners matter, and where the 2.0 safety factor comes from.
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5 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Choosing coping, gravel stop or fascia
Three roof edges, what each one does, how each is tested, and the size limits Drexel publishes.
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4 min · 6 slides · 4 questions
FM Approvals and RoofNav
How FM Approvals relates to ES-1, how to read an FM rating, and how to look an assembly up in RoofNav.
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8 lessons · about 37 min

Flashing details

Counterflashing, step and base flashing, through-wall, drip edge, valleys, penetrations, hems and copings.

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5 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Counterflashing and reglets
Base flashing, the counterflashing that laps it, and the reglets and receivers that hold the top edge.
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4 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Step and base flashing
Step flashing at a sloped sidewall, base flashing at a low-slope wall, and the crickets that keep water moving.
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4 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Through-wall flashing and end dams
Where through-wall flashing goes in a masonry wall, how it is shaped, and why every end is dammed.
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4 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Drip edge sequencing with underlayment
What the IRC asks of a drip edge, which goes on first at eaves and rakes, and the Drexel sequence on a membrane roof.
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4 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Valleys
Open and closed valleys, how wide the metal is, how it is lapped and held down, and the shapes to start from.
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4 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Penetrations and pitch pockets
Pipes, curbs and irregular supports: how each is flashed, and why a pitch pocket is the last resort.
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5 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Hems, seams, laps and sealants
The three hems FlashDraft draws, the common seams, which way laps go, and the sealants that suit each metal.
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7 min · 10 slides · 5 questions
Coping installation sequence
Drexel's Snap Coping-Max/Max-C sequence, step by step, and how the Econo Coping differs.
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2 lessons · about 9 min

Drainage

Gutter and downspout sizing from area and rainfall, and scuppers with their conductor heads.

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5 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Gutter and downspout sizing
Flow from area and rainfall, where the rainfall number comes from, and how gutters and downspouts are laid out.
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4 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Scuppers and conductor heads
Primary and overflow scuppers through a parapet, and the conductor heads that take their water into a downspout.
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4 lessons · about 19 min

Specifying & submittals

Writing a Division 07 section, reading a bend schedule, building a submittal package, and Texas codes.

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5 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Writing a Division 07 specification
Where sheet metal sits in MasterFormat, the three parts of a section, and what each part should name.
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5 min · 6 slides · 5 questions
Reading a bend schedule
Legs, turns, included angles and bend lines - how FlashDraft and the Profile tool describe a piece.
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4 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Building a submittal package with AFS tools
What an AFS submittal package holds, how it keeps product data, shop drawing and evidence apart, and where to build it.
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5 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
The Texas code landscape
City and county authority in Texas, the TDI windstorm program on the coast, and how to find the code a project is under.
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3 lessons · about 12 min

Ordering with AFS

Measuring a profile, the ways to send one to AFS, and what happens after you order.

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4 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Measuring a profile in the field
What to measure on an existing piece - legs, angles, hems and girth - and the shop limits to check it against.
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4 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
Photo to Quote, Scan to Quote and FlashDraft
The ways to send AFS a profile, what each one needs, and the statuses FlashDraft shows as you draw.
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4 min · 7 slides · 4 questions
What happens after you order
Shop drawings, lead times, pickup, delivery and tracking - as AFS describes them on its site.
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6 lessons · about 30 min

Shop fabrication

How AFS sizes a blank, forms hems and locks, makes edge metal and counterflashing, inspects a piece and works safely.

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8 min · 10 slides · 5 questions
Flat patterns and blank width
How AFS sizes the flat strip a profile is cut from, how hems add to it, and what bend allowance and the K-factor change.
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5 min · 8 slides · 4 questions
Forming hems, returns and locks
What hems are for, the three AFS hems and their limits, and the locks and seams that join sheets in the shop and field.
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5 min · 9 slides · 3 questions
Fabricating copings, fascia and gravel stops
Sizing and forming roof-edge metal: lengths, cleats, joints, the girth limit, and why an ES-1 edge is made exactly as tested.
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4 min · 7 slides · 3 questions
Fabricating base flashing, counterflashing and reglets
The pieces at a roof-to-wall joint, the shapes the shop forms, the code minimum metal and the leg limits.
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4 min · 7 slides · 3 questions
Dimensional inspection of formed pieces
What to check before a piece leaves the shop: thickness, girth, legs, angles, hems, painted side and length.
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4 min · 7 slides · 3 questions
Shop safety: guarding, PPE and hands
The OSHA general industry rules that apply in a sheet-metal shop: machine guarding, PPE assessment, hand protection and training.
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8 tiers · 102 modules planned

The full curriculum

Four-lesson modules, from apprentice foundations to master specialist. Each module is published once AFS has reviewed every lesson.

How the lessons are made

Every slide that states a fact names its source: public standards pages, manufacturer data sheets, government sources and AFS's own fabrication data. Standards are paraphrased and cited, never copied. Each lesson shows whether AFS has completed its technical review.

Certificates record completion of AFS Learning Academy lessons. They are not AIA continuing education (CES) credit.