I recently was asked during a presentation how I think today's roofing contractors are different from their counterparts 20 years ago. Are they better or worse?
Well, lower barriers to entry make it easier for unprofessional contractors to come into the marketplace—and they can do lots of damage. At the same time, contractors who try to operate at the highest levels of the profession have to be smarter and more sophisticated because of the demands placed on them and their businesses. But that doesn't really begin to describe the changes that have occurred.
Not long ago, I had the occasion to go through some NRCA archival material and came across the minutes from the July 1957 NRCA board of directors meeting. At that meeting, the board identified three key issues:
It's tempting to conclude from that assessment the industry hasn't changed much. But in 1957, there were perhaps only a half-dozen low-slope roofing materials manufacturers, all making essentially the same product—built-up roofing materials. The acronyms OSHA, EPA and EEOC, to name a few, weren't yet part of the industry vernacular. And the work force was largely composed of young native-born males.
Fast forward to 2008. The industry now has eight or nine primary types of low-slope roofing materials, each with its own application requirements. Training takes on a much different meaning than it did 50—or even 20—years ago, and that's without considering the demands of training workers whose primary languages are other than English.
Increasingly, professional roofing contractors have to keep up with insurance demands; federal, state and local regulations; and changes in employment law. On top of all that, contractors must find and retain customers in an increasingly competitive environment.
Oh, and install quality roof systems, too.
So are today's roofing contractors better or worse than those 20 years ago? I would say both. Advancing professionalism is what it's all about, but doing so has never been more challenging.
Bill Good is NRCA's executive vice president.
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