Since 1996, The Roofing Industry Alliance for Progress' goal has been to bring together all roofing industry segments by funding research and educational programs; providing timely and forward-thinking industry responses to major economic and technological issues; and enhancing the long-term viability and attractiveness of the industry to roofing workers. Upholding this goal has never been so apparent than this past year. From research programs to helping members in the wake of tragedy, the Alliance has proved it is stronger than ever—and growing at a rapid pace.
Coming together
This year, the Alliance continued to unite the roofing industry by focusing on education, recognizing industry members and helping others.
"The Alliance has a unique position as a group within the industry to bring together all sectors," says Alliance Vice President Robert McNamara, president of F.J.A Christiansen Roofing Co. Inc., a Tecta America company, Milwaukee.
The Alliance continued to support educational efforts and offer students financial aid with the Melvin Kruger Endowed Scholarship Program. One hundred sixteen eligible applications for the 2013-14 scholarships were narrowed down to 10 $5,000 scholarships; eight of the scholarships were renewals, and two were new, awarded to Karlee Cox, Clearwater, Minn., recipient of the Firestone Scholarship, and Josiah Martin, Richmond, Va. In total, the Alliance has awarded $530,000 in scholarships to 107 students through the program.
"We'd love for there to be more participation in the scholarship program," says Alliance President Jim MacKimm, executive vice president of Beacon Roofing Supply, Herndon, Va. "We need to see more applications coming in."
To further help the roofing industry grow, the Alliance is developing relationships with construction management schools at Auburn University, Auburn, Ala.; Colorado State University, Fort Collins; and the University of Florida, Gainesville. The universities have agreed to incorporate roofing curricula into their courses and have students participate in roofing industry internships. In addition, the Alliance will provide scholarships for students and faculty at the three universities.
Dennis Conway, a key part of the Alliance's Construction Management Schools Task Force and principal and vice president of Commercial Roofers Inc., Las Vegas, says: "This affects all Alliance members. We need to develop well-rounded students and get them involved and aware of roofing. Nobody in our business is really looking for construction management majors, and we need to be looking for them."
The Alliance's current plan is to begin offering scholarships and internships in the near future; scholarships for faculty members conducting research related to the partnerships also will be offered. The Alliance has allocated $70,000 for developing relationships with construction management schools.
"The response [to the project] has been unbelievable," Conway says. "All Alliance members need good, well-trained people from these programs. The level of enthusiasm for this project will help put it on the fast track."
The Alliance recognizes industry members through its Most Valuable Player (MVP) Awards program every year during NRCA's annual convention. The MVP Awards honor workers who might otherwise go unrecognized, identifying and honoring a maximum of 10 outstanding roofing workers. In addition, one of the winners is chosen to be Professional Roofing's Best of the Best and featured in an article in Professional Roofing.
This year, there was an especially important, and unfortunate, need to help roofing industry members. In April, three roofing workers—Marc Fucarile, J.P. Norden and Paul Norden—from Marshall Roofing, Boston, lost limbs in the Boston Marathon bombing incident. MacKimm raised the issue during the Alliance's spring meeting, hoping to help those in his Boston community. The Alliance decided to allocate funds from its Helping Our Own program to aid these workers in need and sent $12,000 to each of them.
The Alliance originally was founded to fund research and educational programs to advance the roofing industry. In 2007, it expanded its efforts with its Helping Our Own program to reach out to the roofing community's members experiencing catastrophic, life-altering events.
"Helping Our Own was born to do exactly this," McNamara says. "When the Boston tragedy occurred, everyone was sad, but it was a natural opportunity to help. We hate when these tragedies occur, but it's nice when we can do something collectively to help people in difficult situations."
Fucarile wrote to the Alliance, saying he will use his funds for the monthly rent for his new handicap-accessible apartment, saying: "There is so much more good in this world than bad, and you are all living proof of that."
An evolving resource
In terms of research, the Alliance has been considering positioning itself as a source for data collection. There are many data collection points in the roofing industry, especially for economic health and regional product usage. The architecture and construction industries have billing indices, so it only is natural for the roofing industry to have a source for data, as well.
Ducker Worldwide LLC, Troy, Mich., was hired to conduct a feasibility study to see whether this would be possible. Once the study concludes, a detailed proposal, including recommended next steps, will be presented to the Alliance's Board of Trustees for the appropriate action.
The Alliance has provided funds to update the series of Roof Application Training Programs (RATPs). RATP began in 1998 as a comprehensive training program designed for in-house facilitators to train company employees. The training modules provide in-shop and on-the-job instruction guidelines, testing and evaluation materials in the forms of instructors guides, DVDs and student manuals. The Alliance has allocated $100,000 to redo five of the top-selling RATP modules: Administrator and Trainers Program; Overview of Low-slope Roofing; Overview of Steep-slope Roofing; Tear-off, Set up and Equipment—Low-slope Roofing; and Tear-off, Set-up and Equipment—Steep-slope Roofing.
In addition, the Alliance provided $25,000 to help fund NRCA's EnergyWise Online Calculator update. The update was completed in October and includes information from the 2012 versions of the International Code Council'®s International Energy Conservation Code® (IECC) and International Green Construction Code.™ The update also includes new minimum long-term thermal resistance values for polyisocyanurate insulation effective Jan. 1, 2014. As codes change, the calculator will continue to be updated.
The Alliance also is working on air retarder testing based on a request from the Canadian Roofing Contractors Association. Currently, additional research and testing is necessary to fulfill some of the compliance options in IECC 2012 and other codes' and standards' requirements. The Alliance's goal is to develop data that can help establish a test method appropriate for evaluating mechanically fastened roof assemblies, focusing specifically on the effect air retarder placement has on moisture accumulation. The Alliance allocated $25,000 to the testing for 2013-14 with $25,000 as a final installment for the following year.
RoofPoint,™ the Center for Environmental Innovation in Roofing's guideline and rating system that applies to roof systems that maximize energy efficiency and minimize environmental impact, is another program funded by the Alliance and gaining traction. For the past three years, RoofPoint has developed into a professional program demonstrating the important role rooftops play in sustainable construction. Currently, there are 265 buildings registered with RoofPoint roof systems. There is an additional $200,000 earmarked for RoofPoint funding to invest in promotional and marketing opportunities, staff personnel, improvements in tools such as a RoofPoint Carbon Calculator, and a database of energy savings.
Speeding ahead
The Alliance is picking up speed in all areas, including membership. With a staggering seven new members in 2013 as of October, the Alliance now has 133 members. McNamara believes the Alliance has been soliciting new members effectively, leading to this strong uptick in numbers.
"There's a lot of activity going on right now with the Alliance, which leads to good testimonials for the projects. Then, we are able to draw in members with the high energy," McNamara says. "We can show concrete examples of how everyone works together with current members, hopefully spreading the word to new prospects."
"We didn't have new members for several years, but the past few years have been great for us. People have found the Alliance is a good way for companies to network and shape the future of the roofing industry," MacKimm concludes.
As the Alliance continues to grow rapidly, MacKimm believes many more projects will be undertaken.
"For the future, the push we're having on education is a great long-term strategy," MacKimm says. "As we continue to grow the Alliance, the more money we take in, the more projects we'll be able to fund. We have the unfortunate problem right now of having many great prospective projects but not enough money to fund them all, so we have to select the projects that are best for the industry. We will continue to grow so we can put in place more of these great ideas."
Sarah Perkins is Professional Roofing's editorial assistant.
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