The roof of the new secondary school development is not being erected according to the manufacturer's specification - meaning it will not be covered by warranty, The Royal Gazette has learned.

Sources have said that SKB Coatings has threatened to withdraw its guarantee for the roofing system because general contractor Pro-Active Management Systems Ltd. has not followed its guidelines properly.

While SKB has provided the materials for the job, another contractor is putting the roof together.

However, the usual small, foam tiles used for this particular system have not been bought from SKB, and instead much larger ones have been used, which SKB has claimed will not do as good a job.

One source, who did not wish to be named, said: "While the larger tiles are easier to put down and less labour intensive, they are certainly not better. They will not be able to absorb movement as well as the smaller ones."

Pro-Active is building the $70 million replacement for the Berkeley Institute, which was originally scheduled to be finished by the start of September this year.

But it ran into cash-flow problems, which almost brought the site to a standstill two weeks ago.

Vice president of the National Liberal Party Graeme Outerbridge last night said the roofing issue was the last straw for him as a member of the Government Board of Works and Engineering and he resigned at the end of last year.

But he said his concern over that issue was compounded by a lack of information about the Berkeley site, which he said had been a source of frustration for some time.

Doubled with the fact that neither Works Minister Alex Scott or technical officers attended any board meetings for some time, Mr. Outerbridge said, in the end, he felt he had no choice but to resign.

Mr. Outerbridge, whose stepfather John Kaufmann founded SKB, said: "They are totally ignoring the advice of the manufacturer of how the roof should be used.

"The manufacturer has continually advised them of this, including by letter, and therefore, if there are problems, the roof will not be guaranteed."

Mr. Outerbridge said changing the foam sheets to the larger size could lead to multiple problems, not least how well the tiles hold in place and how well they protect against leaking.

But he said he had been frustrated for a long time about the Berkeley site, but, as a board member, found it very difficult to get information.

"I was getting feedback for more than a year about problems up there and, as a board member, I continually requested information, but it was not provided," he added.

"In the end, I felt the board's position as an advisory function was being totally compromised and, basically, I felt we were being stone-walled.

"I decided to step down at the end of last year. The main reason was the way Berkeley was being conducted. I don't want to do a disservice to the people of Bermuda."

He said he was not the only board member to ask questions about Berkeley.

And he said he even suggested an independent financial review be carried out of the site, but that also was not taken up.

He added: "All large projects in Bermuda seem to run into trouble like this now, and I thought a guide could be put in place for the future."

The Royal Gazette was unable to reach either Pro-Active Management Systems Ltd. or the Works and Engineering Ministry for comment. SKB would not comment on the issue of the roof.