As I was saying …

For years, we've heard NRCA is primarily the home of large, commercial roofing contractors. Well, things change. And as someone once said, change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.

Consider just a few demographics:

• Two-thirds of NRCA members perform commercial and residential roofing work.
• One-fourth of NRCA members perform at least 70 percent of their annual sales in the residential market.
• Half of NRCA members have annual sales of less than $1 million.

Clearly, NRCA members are leaders in the residential community. And just as clearly, NRCA has been increasing its efforts in the residential arena.

Earlier this year, we filed a petition for judicial review of new Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) rules addressing fall protection on residential structures—never mind the convoluted definition of "residential" OSHA developed as only OSHA can do. (A structure built as a home but used as, say, a dentist's office is not a "residential" building, but a nursing home is.)

In January, we published Quality Control Guidelines for the Application of Asphalt Shingle Roof Systems in collaboration with the Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association. The document, which offers an industry consensus on shingle application, was literally years in the making.

One of the four volumes of The NRCA Roofing Manual is devoted entirely to steep-slope roofing; it discusses design and installation issues and is widely used by designers and consultants.

Our website routinely attracts thousands of consumers every month; most are homeowners searching for NRCA member contractors. Some members are getting hundreds of Web-based referrals to their websites every year.

And NRCA's involvement with the codes and standards communities increasingly includes matters related to residential roofing, including how to integrate roof-mounted photovoltaic systems into homes.

There's more, of course, but what's most helpful is to understand that most issues facing roofing contractors face all roofing contractors. Those include the long list of issues we're addressing in Washington, D.C. And addressing those issues effectively requires the support—and involvement—of the entire roofing community.

Bill Good is NRCA's executive vice president.