In the wakes of natural disasters, hundreds, thousands and even millions of people can be left homeless. Hurricanes and tornados can rip roofs off buildings, and fires and floods can completely destroy many homes in a matter of seconds.
Roofing contractors have been in high demand following recent natural disasters. Some now have established disaster-response and disaster-preparedness plans so they will be ready when a natural disaster occurs. Following are three contractors' accounts of what their disaster-response plans entail.
A detailed plan
San Antonio-based Beldon Roofing has responded to people's roofing needs in the aftermaths of a number of hurricanes and storms and has developed a detailed disaster-response plan accordingly. The plan relies heavily on familiarizing Beldon Roofing's employees and customers with the company's response procedures.
"Our staff meets on an ongoing basis," says Brad Beldon, Beldon Roofing's president and chief executive officer. "We use a flow chart to identify employees' specific responsibilities and tasks."
With regard to customers, Beldon Roofing's clients are notified in advance about how repairs will be handled and prioritized in the event of a natural disaster. Beldon also makes certain he will have enough employees available in the event of a disaster.
"We have an adequate supply of labor year round, but we will hire as needed," Beldon says. "Our participation in the H2B visa program has enabled us to maintain high numbers of trained workers.
"We also share workers—we have great relationships with a number of local competitors," Beldon continues. "And we have agreements with companies in multiple states."
Having an adequate material supply is an important part of Beldon Roofing's disaster-response plan, as well.
"We purchase materials in advance and stock a great deal of materials," Beldon says. "We will also place orders based on different types of storms."
When a disaster actually hits, Beldon Roofing's plan is put into action.
"We contact our customers through our Code Blue network, which is an internal communication system," Beldon says. "Our Code Blue network has contingency plans in place to handle calls, and we have a backup answering service.
"It is difficult, but customers generally are handled on a first-come, first-served basis," Beldon continues. "And all our work is direct to owners or owners' representatives. With one exception, payment has not been a problem. However, we always expect to carry the load for a long time."
Taking care of employees is an integral part of Beldon Roofing's disaster-response plan.
"We house our workers in our own trailers," Beldon says. "We have the trailers strategically located throughout the region we work in.
"We also have a different pay rate in the event of a disaster," Beldon continues. "Employees work a great deal of overtime and enjoy the extra money."
And as for dealing with contractors who come into town immediately following a disaster to seek work, Beldon says he does not feel threatened.
"Storm chasers don't bother us," Beldon says. "We are in the customer service business, and our customers know the difference."
Essential preparation
For Kiker Corp., Mobile, Ala., disaster preparedness has become an essential part of business. Because of its location, the company has to consider its own well-being, as well as the handling of its customers' needs, in the event of a disaster.
"Our primary disaster concern in this area is hurricanes' winds and flooding," says Bruce McCrory, Kiker's chief operating officer and secretary/treasurer.
"We use standard recommendations for pre-hurricane planning," McCrory says. "This includes securing all job sites, as well as all items in yards and around buildings. We fill all vehicles with fuel and secure some of the larger vehicles inside our warehouses. Some files and items are removed from our offices and stored off-site or in more secure areas in our buildings.
"We also have a natural gas-powered generator that powers all of our buildings if the power fails, and it usually does fail," McCrory continues.
McCrory notes the importance of familiarizing his employees with Kiker's disaster-response plan and staying connected with his employees in the event a disaster occurs.
"Our key personnel, including foremen, are assigned vehicles in advance, so they have those available for response," McCrory says. "Our key people also are connected to us by digital radios. If telephone lines go down, this system generally works well because it is the main communications system for Southern Co., Atlanta, which is the largest electric power company in the Southeast.
"Most of our key personnel have been with Kiker a long time and have experienced a number of storms, so they know what needs to be done and they do it," McCrory continues. "Our foremen secure our job sites by removing items such as insulation and equipment from roofs and storing them somewhere safer. They take photos of job sites prior to expected storms to document the sites' pre-storm conditions. If necessary, they communicate with owners or general contractors to make sure they know we have secured the sites.
"After a storm passes, our employees coordinate with general contractors' superintendents on what action must be taken," McCrory continues. "Of course, sometimes they need to do a few things to temporarily secure a property if it has been damaged."
Kiker has methods in place for ensuring materials will be available in the event of a disaster.
"We do not pre-order or pre-purchase materials," McCrory says. "Our main supplier's warehouse is in the middle of Alabama. As such, we know it generally will be able to supply us post-disaster. We are given high priority by them.
"If a storm strikes our area, we contact our supplier and bring in materials to temporarily dry-in buildings," McCrory continues. "During the first few days after a hurricane, dry-in of roofs is our main priority."
With regard to ensuring Kiker has adequate labor available in the event of a hurricane, McCrory says the company does not hire many new workers because they are not available. Kiker also does not share workers with other local roofing companies.
"Our best success in the past has been to work with our contractor friends in the roofing business," McCrory states. "These are primarily NRCA contractors from out of our area. We have a large customer base, and we want to make sure that if we have someone other than us performing repairs for some of our customers it will be done with our usual standard of quality."
McCrory says: "We know when a storm has passed and all of the dust has settled we can be responsible for the work that was done. Using quality roofing contractors we know helps to ensure we have as few problems as possible."
When a hurricane hits, Kiker makes its customers a priority.
"We have a policy of responding first to our regular customers," says McCrory. "That includes several hospitals, essential facilities and large manufacturing facilities in the region. Other regular customers are next, and new customers are brought in as they can be handled.
"We usually contact customers by telephone or e-mail," he continues. "The power company and telephone company have become good at getting things back up fairly quickly. And we handle the calls ourselves."
Kiker holds property owners responsible for the payment for work.
"We have standard proposals and contracts, and that is standard operating procedure," McCrory says. "We generally do not work with insurance companies."
And importantly, Kiker respects its employees' limits during post-hurricane work.
"We generally do not have a morale problem because we make sure we don't overwork our people," McCrory says. "They can only do so much. However, we do not have a disaster pay rate. Historically, all our employees have often participated in sharing profits made by the company."
McCrory, like Beldon, isn't concerned with storm chasers.
"We don't worry about them," McCrory says. "The bad ones—and there are some good ones—generally provide future work for us in one to five years. Following behind them is a profit center."
General preparation
Fryer Roofing Co. Inc., Fresno, Calif., deals with a different—though just as destructive—type of natural disaster: fires. And as a result, Fryer Roofing's disaster-response plan is different from Beldon Roofing's and Kiker's.
"We really don't have an actual disaster-response plan in place for fires," says Bruce Fryer, Fryer Roofing's chief executive officer. "Hurricanes can tear off roofs, but fires have a way of destroying entire buildings. But in terms of general preparedness for severe weather or events, we have several methods in place."
Fryer Roofing's preparation hinges on its employees.
"In the event of unusual weather or events, our employees know to report to the office, not to just call in," Fryer says. "We have a team ready to respond in the instance of extreme weather or events."
Having relationships with distributors also is an essential part of Fryer Roofing's natural disaster preparation.
"We have a particular distributor who will jump through hoops to get us the materials we need," Fryer says. "The company is there if we need anything because we are one of its best customers.
"Basically, getting your employees tuned in and having relationships with your closest distributors are most important," Fryer says.
Getting prepared
With weather conditions intensifying and hurricanes becoming more frequent, disaster-response and disaster-preparedness plans are becoming necessary for contractors who live in natural disaster-prone areas and for contractors who respond to natural disasters in nearby areas.
Storms and natural disasters are unavoidable. But as these contractors have shown, they can be manageable if a response plan is enacted.
Ashley St. John is Professional Roofing's associate editor.
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