? about Heljan roofs

A number of Heljan kits use a ribbed style roof on large structures such as their roundhouse. I am trying to figure out what style of roof this is supposed to represent. On the roundhouse, I might think the ribs represent the crimps between sections of metal roofing, but the texture of the roof isn’t smooth like metal. In addition, on some kits, like the roundhouse, the ribs run vertically but on others, the ribs run horizontally. I’ve never seen an actually American roof that this would equate to. Since Heljan is a European company, I was wondering if this style of roof represents a type of construction used in Europe.