A workshop for the adoption of cool roofs in Uttar Pradesh was conducted by GRIHA, in association with NDRC on 17th January,2025 at Lemon Tree Hotel,Lucknow. The primary agenda of the workshop was to explore and analyse the market barriers and opportunities associated with the adoption and implementation of cool roofs in Uttar Pradesh. The workshop brought together people from various walks of life: industry experts, academicians, real estate developers, manufacturers, architects, bureaucrats and other stakeholders.

The session began with Dr Vishal Garg’s presentation of why cool roofs? A question which was answered using various informatics. He presented compelling data highlighting the need for early and fast adoption of this solution in order to heat proof our ever expanding metro cities. As a noteworthy veteran in the field of cooling technologies himself, he particularly vouched for nudging policy makers to make progress on this front in adopting cool roof solutions. Mr Gerry George, from NDRC highlighted the need for scaling up cool roofs through awareness building and government initiatives. Mr Akash Deep from GRIHA council presented meticulously collected case studies on cool roof implementation across India and abroad.

Dr. Ritu Gulati, professor of faculty of architecture, AKTU Lucknow presented the efficacy of cool roofs against oppressive heat. She also highlighted the initial cost in getting a cool roof which is a barrier for those who cannot afford.She wanted to drive home the fact that cooling should not be an elitist concept and that poor people also deserve cooling.Her suggestion was to use alternative methods like lime plaster, thatched roofs and other traditional methods to defray the cost so that cooling becomes for accessible to all.

The challenges in cool roof adoption were a major highlight of the workshop.Some of them are as follows
- Lack of Awareness: it is yet to reach the intended population,The potential for scale is enormous and is still untapped.People often confuse technical High SRI paint with normal white paint.
- High initial cost: is certainly a disincentive for many who are not willing to spend much on roof surfaces.
- Luke warm government support: although some states like Telangana has come up with Cool Roof Policy, it is yet to be replicated across the majority of states.Subsidies and other forms of assistance have not yet found mention in policy corridors.
- Lack of standardisation: low standard products have flooded the market.The claims of highest SRI values are often not backed by rigorous lab tests, but advertised to grab eyeballs and miss- sell products.These paints also wear off after sometime.This affects the reputation of the entire cool roof industry.
- High taxes: on cool roof products is also a big barrier to adoption
While the above problems were discussed by academicians, architects and government planners, they looked for manufacturers and market professionals for solutions.
LuminX provided a 3 point solution strategy to counter challenges
- Awareness: Through social media handles, advertisement, physical campaigns.We have enough faith in consumer’s ability to make the best choices once they are aware of the products.
- High initial costs: this can be defrayed somewhat through economies of scale. Cool Roofs reduce the load of air conditioners, reflecting in electricity bills in summers. So the life cycle cost of the product can be retrieved in just 3-4 years. Reliance on traditional solutions like thatched roof or lime plasters might not be effective for long term and although might sound budget friendly in the short time, can have higher life cycle costs in maintenance, reapplication and repair.
- Standardisation in products: LuminX strives to provide the best product in the category of high SRI paint.Unlike others,LuminX’s products are certified by reputed national and international organisations.SRI values arrived at for the product after undergoing rigorous tests.
LuminX is confident of its superior products and provides a 3 year warranty post application.
Cool Roof is an arsenal against climate change whose time has come.Despite the challenges, the industry around cool roof is destined to grow as one of the most effective, budget friendly, carbon neutral solutions among other products in the market.