Capping off Commercial Projects Across the U.S.

Progressive Roofing
Written by Jessica Ferlaino

Since 1978, Progressive Roofing has been offering its services to a growing network of customers across the United States. From its headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona, the company has grown to multiple locations and employs upwards of seven hundred people. Progressive Roofing has established itself as a top commercial roofing contractor in the national commercial roofing market.
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Progressive Roofing offers customers a multitude of roofing system options, maintenance services and design-build services. The company’s highest commitment to safety, quality and service has built long-standing relationships with customers and resulted in a great deal of success.

The family-owned company was formed in 1978 by Mark Farrell and has experienced consistent growth since. The Farrell family has industry experience that dates back to the 1940s, and this rich history has paved the way for a bright future.

Progressive Roofing is certified, trained and approved by every major roofing manufacturer to offer customers a diverse range of roofing systems that will meet any project requirement, big or small. Its accredited professionals offer design-build services in markets nationwide.

The company has created a place for itself in the market by growing with its customers and developing long-standing, highly-valued relationships that gain repeat business. Progressive Roofing has expanded geographically with a localized and national presence and has offices in key markets to maximize its market reach.

Manager Rhett Myers says that this approach has led to natural growth for the firm. “It has grown organically for the most part – especially here in Phoenix, where Progressive started. It has been through the relationships with customers. Relationships like that – repeat business – are very important to us, and that’s exactly how we have grown.”

Examples of Progressive Roofing’s exceptional commercial roofing projects can be found on schools, hospitals, resorts, casinos, buildings and facilities across the U.S. Many of these buildings have achieved LEED certification.

The Verrado High School project in Buckeye, Arizona incorporated 382Kw of solar roof panels. This project achieved LEED Silver Certification, while the Fresno veterans’ hospital project with its tile roofing achieved LEED Gold. Another project, the Cardinals Stadium at the University of Phoenix, has been ranked by Business Week as one of the top ten most impressive sports facilities.

Behind the company’s growth and success, is a strong reputation for quality and safety. With an experience modification rate of .67, well below the industry average, Progressive Roofing has demonstrated that it makes safety its utmost priority. The company has a dedicated team of safety professionals who make every effort to uphold its safety culture and exceptional safety record.

“We have a safety director with many years of experience in safety,” Myers explained. “Safety is very important to us for a lot of reasons, not the least of which is we want our guys to go home at the end of the day after they are up on the roof. Creating a culture of safety and fall protection is a major emphasis in our business.”

Regardless of whether a project entails maintenance, the replacement of an existing roof, waterproofing weather barriers or designing and installing a new roofing system, Progressive Roofing has the team of professionals, the experience and the capacity to achieve project success. The company helps customers protect their assets by extending a roof’s lifecycle in a cost-effective way.

Roofing services include single-ply, built-up, modified bitumen, metal, foam, shingle, tile, slate, waterproofing, coatings, lightweight concrete and green roofs. Progressive Roofing has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB), and customers are guaranteed the benefit of dedicated service twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week – including holidays.

“It starts up front with the estimators and the salespeople, and we have some of the best salespeople and estimators – in my opinion – in the industry,” said Myers. “They know what and how to help the customer get the best product for the best price for their particular project.”

A great deal of pre-construction planning occurs with meetings between the forepersons, superintendents and the employees who are going to do the job. By communicating, these parties can determine what the best course of action is and then accomplish those goals to meet customer specifications.

For New Mexico’s Spaceport project, which was uniquely designed to look like a manta ray, Progressive Roofing utilized EPDM (ethylene propylene diene terpolymer), a durable synthetic rubber roofing membrane that has wide application in low-slope buildings to improve durability and sustainability. This $35 million, 110,000-square-foot project achieved LEED Gold certification.

Progressive Roofing was also responsible for installing seventeen acres of garden terraces for the Optima Camelview Village apartments in Scottsdale, Arizona. This two-million-square-foot, seven-hundred-unit condominium draws on green roof technology and is a great example of how green roofs and rooftop gardens can be incorporated into a commercial build.

Despite there being an industry-wide challenge to secure and retain qualified labour, the company enjoys the benefits of the industry knowledge and experience provided by its long-term employees. “We try to bring up our people through the ranks and train them to be foremen and managers. So even though it is hard to find good, experienced people, we are willing to bring someone in to train them how to be a roofer, and we will help them get to where we think they should be or where they want to be,” stated Myers.

“A short-term goal would definitely be training the younger generation of roofers that are coming in,” Michelle Farrell-Rojas, Progressive Roofing’s Manager explained. “We are trying to increase the interest of the younger generation in the roofing and construction industries. We do that by offering training and career opportunities to employees.”

The company is a participating member of the ICE Mutual Agreement between Government and Employers (IMAGE) program. The joint effort helps employers in targeted industries develop an increasingly stable and secure workforce. This reinforces the company’s commitment to maintaining the highest standards throughout all levels of its operations.

To better serve its customers, Progressive Roofing is always looking for new opportunities to grow. “We definitely want to expand, grow and open in new locations within the next ten years,” Farrell-Rojas said. Myers further reinforced this sentiment. “Our motto is: we are the can-do company. So there is not a lot that we turn down. We’re trying to grow and expand our volume ongoing. That’s both a short and long-term goal.”

Despite economic challenges in the market, Progressive Roofing has enjoyed consistent growth since its operations began. A great deal of the company’s success is attributable to the longstanding industry relationships that it has formed, both with customers and with roofing system manufacturers.

“There really isn’t any roofing manufacturer that we cannot install,” said Myers. “We have formed great relationships over the years with roofing manufacturers and roofing distributors, who are the major people we purchase material from for our roofs.”

This is one of the few companies that were not forced to make any significant layoffs to respond to the recent economic downturn. He attributes this to the strength of Progressive Roofing’s position in the market and the diverse market sectors it serves.

“I would say that it was because of our relationships with building owners, our ability to go out and do work for governmental agencies that others couldn’t or can’t do and because of the relationship our owner has with this market of building owners,” explained Myers.

Given this strong industry network that has been developed and fostered over time, the company undertakes projects of any size, offering a diverse range of roofing system options that are tailored to the customer’s project requirements and budgetary limits. Progressive Roofing achieves project success, doing so according to plan, with a focus on quality and safety.

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