O U R S T O R Y

Sixteen years in the making. Built to be built

Architect John Rountree drew the first Energy Roof in 2010, built on a simple conviction: a roof shouldn’t just carry solar panels — it should be the building’s energy system. Conventional construction stacks a membrane, racking, and solar modules as three separate systems, each with its own cost, labor, and points of failure. John’s patented concept collapses all three into a single roof plane that weatherproofs the building, generates electricity, and manages heat.

In 2026, John teamed with mechanical engineer and university professor Beda Pormentilla to take the concept from patent drawings to a validated, manufacturable product. Together they formed Energy Roof Systems LLC in Jersey City, New Jersey, uniting architectural vision with rigorous systems engineering.

Engineering came first. A nine-run conjugate-heat-transfer CFD campaign evaluated 1.5-, 3-, and 4.5-inch air-gap geometries across summer and winter operating modes. The 3-inch plenum was selected as the design configuration — removing roughly 59% of incident summer heat while maximizing winter heat delivery. The result is a factory-built system of interlocking 4’ × 4’ glass-on-glass panels, designed for panelized and modular construction.

Today, the team is building a full-scale, 28-panel prototype roof (28’ × 16’) for instrumented performance testing, and is selecting industry partners and funding collaborators to carry the Energy Roof from prototype to market.

T H E T E A M

John Rountree

PRESIDENT

Architect and originator of the Energy Roof concept (patent drawings, 2010). Leads architectural integration, building applications, and partner design coordination.

Beda Pormentilla

VICE PRESIDENT

Mechanical engineer and university professor. Leads system engineering, thermal simulation, and the prototype & testing program. Founder of engineering consultancy Bedatek LLC.

Sam Willis

ENGINEERING INTERN

Supports the engineering and funding workstreams — grant-program research, energy analysis, and test-program logistics.