Roofing, Siding, and Sheet Metal Contractors
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Industry Overview
The roofing and siding industry includes 30,000 companies with combined annual revenue of about $25 billion. Most companies are small, local contractors, with annual revenue less than $1 million. Large commercial roofers like Centimark and Tecta America are privately held and probably have annual revenue under $500 million. Commercial and residential roofing are quite different and most companies specialize in one or the other.
Competitive Landscape
Demand for roofing services is closely tied to local real estate construction. This is a highly fragmented industry, with few large companies and little repeat business. Roofing technology is relatively simple and there are no economies of scale aside from the ability to handle several projects at once. Companies compete based mainly on price.
Because roofs need regular maintenance and often must be replaced every 20 years or so, roofing provides relatively steady work compared to other work that depends chiefly on new construction.
Products, Operations & Technology
Roofing and siding contractors install and repair commercial and residential roofs and siding, although the majority of industry revenue is from roofing. Contractors often provide siding and sheet metal work in addition because the work techniques are similar. Almost 70 percent of industry revenue comes from commercial jobs, of which 75 percent involve reroofing, repair, and maintenance and 25 percent new construction. The average useful life of a commercial roof is about 14 years. Reroofing, maintenance, and repairs are often more profitable than new construction, as companies often negotiate these contracts rather than soliciting bids from several competitors. Roof repair involves simple tasks like caulking, fixing leaks, and re-coating. Roof restorations are bigger jobs, involving resurfacing and major repairs. Reroofing costs twice as much as restoring, and involves replacing all major materials.
Roofing work is labor intensive. The availability of skilled roofing labor is an ongoing concern.
The two main types of commercial roofing systems are built-up and single-ply. Common commercial roofing materials used are synthetic rubber (EPDM); asphalt; coal tar; metal (steel, alloys, aluminum); acrylic (urethane); sprayed polyurethane foam; shingles (fiberglass asphalt, cement-based, wood, slate); and modified bitumen (asphalt mixed with chemicals). Built-up roofs are constructed on the roof by the contractor using rolls of component materials such as felts and asphalt. Single-ply roofs are prefabricated membranes of flexible sheets of compounded synthetic materials like thermosets, thermoplastics, or modified bitumens. Asphalt shingles, for residential construction, are one of the most widely used roofing materials. Nearly 12 billion square feet of various asphalt shingle products are manufactured annually, enough to cover more than 5 million homes every year. Asphalt roofing products are classified into four broad groups: shingles, residential roll roofing, built-up roofing, and modified bitumen membranes.
The different types of siding materials include cedar, vinyl, steel, brick, stone, aluminum, and fiber cement. Vinyl is the most popular exterior siding on homes today because it's maintenance-free. Brick, stone, and cedar are also popular, but more expensive. Steel siding is used in dry areas frequented by damaging hailstorms. Aluminum is now rarely used. Insulation and vapor barriers must be installed with most siding and roof systems. In addition to sheet metal roofs and siding, roofing contractors often use metal for gutters and drains.